A&P's owner posts 4Q loss, shares plunge

MONTVALE, N.J. - Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. today recorded a fiscal fourth-quarter loss, sending its shares plunging more than 30 percent in heavy trading.

The operator of the A&P grocery chain posted a loss of $111.1 million, or $4.15 per share, in the quarter ended Feb. 28 as the company saw cost-conscious consumers reducing spending at the supermarket.

That compares with a loss of $61.5 million, or $1.73 per share, in the corresponding period a year earlier.

The latest quarter included $56.6 million in depreciation and amortization costs.

Revenue at the Montvale, N.J.-based company rose 4 percent to $2.29 billion from $2.2 billion.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a loss of 31 cents per share and revenue of $2.3 billion.

The grocer's same-store sales fell 1.3 percent during the quarter. Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, are a key measure of retailer performance, because they measure growth at existing stores rather than from newly opened ones.

A&P chief executive Eric Claus said the company was feeling the effect of "a cash-strapped consumer."

For the full fiscal year, A&P reported a loss of $139.9 million, or $5.41 per share, compared with a loss of $160.7 million, or $4.22 per share, the year before. Revenue rose 49 percent to $9.52 billion from $6.4 billion.

The company runs stores under the brand of A&P (110 stores in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut); Super Fresh (69 in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Washington); Pathmark (144 stores in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and New York); and others.

Shares fell $2.48, or about 37 percent, to $4.21 on four times the average daily volume.