Kroger (NYSE:KR) rose in morning trade after the largest U.S. supermarket operator reported a 25% higher-than-expected profit in its fiscal second quarter, aided by lower operating expenses and higher fuel margins.
Shares were up 4.3% at $36.95 at 10:14 a.m. in New York. The stock has added 13% so far this year.
Net income rose to $433mln, or $0.44 per share, in the three months ended August 15, from $347mln, or $0.35 per share, a year earlier, the Cincinnati, Ohio-based company said in a statement on Friday.
That topped the $0.40 average estimate of 21 analysts polled by Capital IQ.
Identical supermarket sales, excluding fuel, rose 5.3%.
Second-quarter sales rose 0.9 percent to $25.54 billion.
“Our core food business continued its strong performance and we benefitted from fuel margins that expanded throughout the quarter,” chief executive officer Rodney McMullen said in the statement.