Family Dollar said Wednesday that its net income rose 26 percent in the fourth quarter as sales improved despite flat customer traffic.
The discount retailer’s average customer transaction and a key revenue metric were also flat. The company gave a cautious 2014 earnings forecast and a first-quarter earnings outlook that was below Wall Street’s average expectations.
Its shares fell more than 3 percent in premarket trading.
Family Dollar Stores Inc. earned $102.2 million, or 88 cents per share, for the period ended Aug. 31. That compares with $80.9 million, or 69 cents per share, in the prior-year period.
Excluding an accounting adjustment, earnings were 86 cents per share. This beat the 83 cents per share that analysts polled by FactSet expected.
Revenue for the Matthews, N.C.-based company rose 6 percent to $2.5 billion from $2.36 billion. Sales of consumables climbed 8.3 percent, helped by higher sales of refrigerated and frozen food, health aids and tobacco.
Wall Street forecast $2.56 billion in revenue.
Family Dollar operates stores throughout southwestern Ohio.