The 75-year-old, Jacksonville, FL-based grocer is confident the red ink has been stanched on its balance sheet and feels its current management and store restructuring will prevent a repeat of the unprecedented first quarter's 57% profit drop.
That may take some doing. In the first half, the 1,079-store company lost $229 million. Winn-Dixie shares are down 75% from early 1998. The stock is trading at the $14 mark on the New York Stock Exchange.
Still, the firm is proceeding with its planned purchase of nine Orlando-area stores from privately-held Gooding's Supermarkets Inc. for an undisclosed price. The closing is set for Oct. 11. The nine properties total about 500,000 sf.
As an example of its restructuring, Winn-Dixie is cutting back on the amount of space for produce and meat products in 650 stores. The grocer is also experimenting with a low-cost, warehouse-style outlet called Save Rite. A Jacksonville supermarket is being converted for the prototype project.
Low-priced supermarket chains such as Kash 'n' Karry and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. have eroded Winn-Dixie's market share over the past five years.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
