Metro's Q1 profit up year over year amid higher sales

Metro Inc. reports its first-quarter profit and sales climbed compared with a year ago, despite challenges caused by rising inflation.

The Montreal-based grocery and drugstore retailer says it earned $207.7 million or 85 cents per diluted shared for the 12-week period ended Dec. 18, up from a profit of $191.2 million or 76 cents per share in the same quarter a year earlier.

Sales in the quarter totalled $4.32 billion, up from $4.28 billion in the same quarter last year.

Food same-store sales were down 1.4% compared with a year ago, while pharmacy same-store sales were up 7.7%.

On an adjusted basis, Metro said it earned 88 cents per diluted share, up from an adjusted profit of 79 cents per diluted share a year ago.

Eric La Flèche, Metro's president and CEO, said the company's continued sales growth comes despite the grocery industry's higher than normal inflationary pressure.

"The rapid spread of the Omicron variant since the end of the quarter has caused challenges in our operations," he said in a statement on Tuesday.