Parent Company Of Sobey’s Grocery Chain Announces Dividend Increase
Following better-than-expected quarterly results, Empire Co. Ltd (TSX:EMP.A) has announced that it is raising its dividend by a penny to 12 cents per share.
The company behind the Sobey's and Safeway grocery stores said Thursday that it will increase its quarterly payment to shareholders effective immediately.
The announcement comes after Empire Co. reported a profit of $122.1 million in its latest quarter, up from $71.0 million in the same quarter of 2019. The profit amounted to 45 cents per share, compared with 26 cents per share a year earlier.
Sales in what was the company's fourth quarter grew to $6.22 billion compared with $5.89 billion. Same-store sales were up 3.2% for the most recent quarter, compared with 0.5% a year ago.
On an adjusted basis, Empire Co. said it earned $126.5 million or 46 cents per share for the quarter, up from an adjusted profit of $93.0 million or 35 cents per share a year ago.
Analysts polled by Bloomberg had expected a profit of 42 cents per share for the latest quarter.
