Empire reports Q4 profit and revenue up from year ago, raises quarterly dividend

Empire Co. Ltd. raised its quarterly dividend as it reported its fourth-quarter profit and sales rose compared with a year ago.

The parent company of Sobeys and Safeway says it will now pay a quarterly dividend of 24.25 cents per share, up from 22 cents per share.

The increased payment to shareholders came as Empire says it earned $212 million or 94 cents per share for the quarter ended May 2.

The result compared with a profit of $173 million or 74 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

Sales totalled $7.81 billion, up from $7.64 billion.

Same-store sales rose 1.7%, while same-store food sales gained 1.5%.