NEWS WATCH: INGLES MARKETS RECEIVES 2ND DELINQUENCY NOTICE... WAL-MART DROPPED FROM NEW YORK CITY PROJECT... FOOD LION BUYS THREE MORE WINN-DIXIE SITES...

INGLES MARKETS RECEIVES 2ND DELINQUENCY NOTICE

d last week its stock may be delisted by the Nasdaq exchange after it received a notice of delinquency because of Ingles' failure to file its Form 10-Q report for its fiscal first quarter. Brenda S. Tudor, chief financial officer, said in a statement that "the company is working diligently to complete the filing of its Form 10-Q for the December 2004 quarter. We believe once we get this filing completed, we will be able to get back on track with our history of timely filings." Nasdaq previously sent Ingles a delinquency notice regarding its 10-K form for the fiscal year ended Sept. 24, which Ingles filed earlier this month. Ingles said the delays are related to internal inquiries after an informal investigation of its accounting practices was announced by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

WAL-MART DROPPED FROM NEW YORK CITY PROJECT

NEW YORK -- A plan to build the first Wal-Mart store in New York City has been dropped by its real-estate developer because of public and labor opposition, according to reports last week. Vornado Realty Trust, which had planned to include a 132,000-square-foot Wal-Mart discount store as part of a mixed-use project in the Rego Park section of Queens, concluded that opposition to the tenant could jeopardize city approval of its project, reports said. A spokeswoman for Wal-Mart, Bentonville Ark., said that a deal had yet to be agreed upon between the developer and the retailer, and that Wal-Mart was scouting other locations in the city.

FOOD LION BUYS THREE MORE WINN-DIXIE SITES

SALISBURY, N.C. -- Food Lion here has acquired three more Winn-Dixie stores in Virginia, a spokesman for Food Lion said last week. The Delhaize-owned chain will close all three locations by this week and reopen two of them as Food Lion stores within a few days. No decision has been made yet on when or if the third location, in Quinton, Va., will reopen. The other two stores are in Highland Springs and Midlothian. Terms of the acquisitions were not disclosed. In November, Food Lion said it had acquired five other Winn-Dixies in Virginia and five in North Carolina, as Winn-Dixie Stores, Jacksonville, Fla., continues to downsize.

CUB FOODS BUYS TWO COUNTY MARKET STORES

STILLWATER, Minn. -- Cub Foods here said last week it would purchase County Market stores in Champlin, Minn., and Chanhassen, Minn., and convert the stores to the Cub banner. Terms were not disclosed. Expansion and remodeling of the Champlin store is already under way, Cub said, and should be completed by June. The Chanhassen store will be expanded and remodeled this summer. The locations will increase to 52 the number of Cub stores in the Twin Cities metro area. Cub is a division of Supervalu, Minneapolis.

STATER BROS. BREAKS GROUND ON NEW HEADQUARTERS

COLTON, Calif. -- Stater Bros. Markets here broke ground last week on the 2.5-million-square-foot site of its new corporate offices and distribution center in San Bernardino. The new facility is located about seven miles from its existing corporate complex here. The company said the offices are scheduled to open in summer 2006 and the distribution center in fall 2006, replacing eight existing smaller distribution centers located in and around Colton, Redlands and Mira Loma, Calif.