Empire posts lower Q4 adjusted earnings amid turnaround of Sobeys grocery unit

STELLARTON, N.S. — The parent of Sobeys is reporting a decline in adjusted earnings for the first full quarter since it installed a new chief executive with a mandate to revive the national grocery business.

Empire Co. Ltd. (TSX:EMP.A) had a $29.5 million net profit attributable to shareholders or 11 cents per share for the quarter ended May 6, which ended the company’s 2017 financial year.

After excluding major writedowns reported last year, Empire’s adjusted profit declined year-over-year to $50.2 million or 18 cents per share. That’s down from $95.3 million or 35 cents per share.

Empire’s revenue — which mostly comes from Sobeys — was down $484.3 million from the same time last year, when the fourth quarter had an extra week.

Sales dropped to about $5.8 billion — with $461.2 million of the decline attributed to last year’s extra week. Same-store sales were also down 1.1 per cent overall, or 1.6 per cent when fuel sales were excluded.