Acme to close 3 Philly-area stores

PHILADELPHIA - Acme Markets is closing three Philadelphia-area stores.

Company spokeswoman Taryn Duckett says the current economic conditions have forced the company to make the tough decision.

She says Acme will be closing stores in Ambler, West Chester and Collegeville in Pennsylvania and one in Newton, N.J.

Duckett wouldn't disclose how many employees would be affected, but she said employees would be given the option to move to other stores within Acme's network.

The four stores will close within the next two months.

Hefty one-time charges led Supervalu Inc. - the owner of Philadelphia-born Acme and other supermarkets - to post a big loss last week for its fiscal third quarter, but the grocer beat Wall Street estimates when the special items were excluded from the results.

For the quarter, ended Nov. 29, Supervalu posted a loss of $2.94 billion, or $13.95 per share, compared with a profit of $141 million, or 66 cents per share, in the year-ago period.

Supervalu, which is based in Minneapolis, earned 62 cents per share when the charges are excluded. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a profit of 60 cents per share.

The $3.3 billion in charges stemmed from an accounting requirement that the company write down the value of some intangible assets.

Acme and Save-a-Lot, which also is part of the SuperValu stable, employ about 11,400 people in the Philadelphia region.

SuperValu shares closed yesterday at $17.87, down 64 cents; the price has ranged from $8.59 to $35.91 in the last 52 weeks.