Kroger Reports Positive Growth Across The Board

Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR), the biggest U.S. supermarket operator, reported on Thursday an increase in quarterly profit and raised its annual profit forecast. The company said it earned $481 million, or 92 cents a share, last quarter, compared with a profit of $439 million, or 78 cents a share, a year earlier. Analysts had been calling for EPS of 0.88 cents. Revenue rose 3.4 percent to $30 billion, which is slightly below the Street’s expectation of $30.2 billion. Excluding fuel, sales were up 3.8 percent. Key Takeaways From Kroger First Quarter 2013 Results Achieved 38th consecutive quarter of positive identical supermarket…