Cincinnati based The Kroger Co reported net earnings of $196.5 million, or $0.27 per fully diluted share, for the second quarter ended August 13, 2005. Net earnings in the year-ago period were $142.4 million, or $0.19 per fully diluted share.
Total sales for the second quarter of fiscal 2005 increased 6.8 percent to $13.9 billion. Identical supermarket sales increased 5.1 percent with fuel and 3.4 percent without fuel. By either measure, this represents Kroger's highest identical sales since the merger with Fred Meyer Inc in 1999. It also represents the eighth consecutive quarter of positive identical supermarket sales, excluding fuel.
“Kroger's business strategy is squarely aimed at consistently meeting the needs of customers through great service, selection and value. In the second quarter, associates continued to focus on improving the shopping experience for customers,” said David B. Dillon, Kroger Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “This commitment to placing the 'customer first' helped drive growth in customer traffic and average transaction size.”
Business at Ralphs and Food 4 Less in southern California continued to improve during the second quarter. In southern California, identical supermarket sales without fuel at both divisions continued to grow in the second quarter and, on a combined basis, increased 2.9 percent over the prior-year period.
Over the first two quarters of fiscal 2005, sales increased 6.5 percent to $31.8 billion. Net earnings for the first two quarters of fiscal 2005 were $490.7 million, or $0.67 per diluted share. For the first two quarters of fiscal 2004, net earnings were $405.3 million, or $0.54 per diluted share.
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