SuperValu 1Q profit drops 49 percent; shares fall

SuperValu Inc. (SVU) on Thursday reported profit that decreased by 49 percent in its fiscal first quarter after receiving a large tax benefit a year ago.

Shares of the grocery store operator fell more than 6 percent in premarket trading.

The Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based company said net income declined to $43 million, or 17 cents per share, from $85 million, or 34 cents per share, in the same quarter a year earlier.

Earnings, adjusted to account for discontinued operations and non-recurring costs, were 18 cents per share. The average estimate of analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 17 cents per share.

The company said revenue slipped to $5.23 billion from $5.24 billion in the same quarter a year ago, but beat Wall Street forecasts. Analysts expected $5.17 billion, according to Zacks.

SuperValu shares fell 58 cents, or 6.5 percent, to $8.30 before the stock market open Thursday. As of Wednesday's close, the stock has increased 12 percent in the past 12 months.