Albertsons Cos. Inc. stock ACI jumped 2.9% in premarket trade Tuesday, after the grocery store chain, which is in the midst of merging with Kroger Co. KR, posted better-than-expected earnings for its fiscal third quarter. The company had net income of $375.5 million, or 20 cents a share, for the quarter to Dec. 3, down from $424.5 million, or 74 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to 87 cents a share, well ahead of the 66 cent FactSet consensus. Sales rose to $18.2 billion from $16.7 billion, also ahead of the $17.8 billion FactSet consensus. The stock has fallen 34% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 SPX has fallen 17%.
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