Kroger shatters expectations with Q2 results
Kroger’s winning streak amid the COVID-19 pandemic continued Friday as the grocer reported second-quarter results that beat Wall Street expectations.
Kroger is the nation’s largest supermarket chain. It posted an $819 million profit on sales of $30.5 billion – with profits nearly tripling (up 175.8%) and revenue climbing 8.2% from the same period last year.
“We delivered extremely strong results in the second quarter,” CEO Rodney McMullen said in a statement. “We are more certain than ever that the strategic choices and investments made ... have positioned Kroger to
The grocer now predicts identical store sales excluding fuel sales will jump an astonishing 13+% – more than five times the previous forecast of 2.25% growth.
meet the moment, especially as customers are rediscovering their passion for food at home.”
Kroger and other food retailers have benefited from a huge 2020 shift to groceries as consumers slashed restaurant dining to avoid crowds and potential exposure to the novel coronavirus.
Shopping habits have sustained the shift enough to prompt Kroger to update its 2020 guidance for the first time since March: the grocer now predicts identical store sales excluding fuel sales will jump an astonishing 13+% – more than five times the previous forecast of 2.25% growth.
Kroger said its digital sales more than doubled in the quarter, up 127%.
The timing of the national crisis occurred a few years after Kroger sped up the development of its online sales business that permits customers to purchase groceries via the internet for doorstep delivery or parking lot pickup. Kroger began a major push into digital shopping after Amazon suddenly became a direct competitor with its 2017 takeover of Whole Foods.
Besides Kroger stores, the grocer operates several regional supermarket chains in 35 states, including Fred Meyer, Harris Teeter, Ralphs, Mariano’s, Fry’s, Smith’s, King Soopers, QFC and others. The company has nearly 2,800 stores and employs 540,000 workers.