FOOD 4 LESS MERGER LIFTS RALPHS NET SALES FIGURES

COMPTON, Calif. -- Ralphs Grocery Co. here said the addition of 174 stores following its merger with Food 4 Less Supermarkets last June resulted in increased net sales for the fourth quarter ended Jan. 28, while same-store sales were down 0.9%.

the fiscal period that included 20 weeks of operations of premerger Food 4 Less and 32 weeks of operations of the merged company. Results cover 278 conventional Ralphs stores and 68 Food 4 Less warehouse stores in southern California.

The company said it had a pretax loss of approximately $105 million for the quarter, which included $76 million in nonrecurring restructuring charges and transition costs associated with the acquisition of nine stores and two facilities from Smith's Food & Drug Centers, Salt Lake City.

Operating cash flow before the effect of merger-related restructuring charges and transition costs was approximately $245.2 million for the year, and approximately $90.6 million for the quarter.