KONINKLIJKE AHOLD : Ahold publishes Third Quarter 2014 Results

Zaandam, the Netherlands - Ahold today published its interim report for the third quarter of 2014.

• Q3 sales of €7.5 billion, up 1.9% (up 1.5% at constant exchange rates)
• Underlying operating margin excluding SPAR acquisition stable versus prior quarter (3.9%)
• Q3 net income of €178 million, up 7.9% (up 8.5% at constant exchange rates)
• Improved sales trends in the United States and the Netherlands during the quarter
• Addition of 49 SPAR stores to our Czech business; integration well underway

CEO Dick Boer said: "This quarter we reported improved sales trends in the United States and the Netherlands while our margin was stable versus the prior quarter, excluding the impact of the SPAR acquisition.

"In the United States, the rollout of our program to improve quality, service and value for our customers is progressing well. By the end of this quarter, the program was active in over half of our stores.

"In the Netherlands, Albert Heijn's sales performance improved, while the margin in the Netherlands was in line with the previous quarter, adjusted for increased investments in growth at bol.com. In the Czech Republic, we are well underway with the integration of the SPAR business. We are pleased with the performance of the stores that have been converted to the Albert brand and expect to have all stores rebranded by the end of the first quarter next year.

"We expect that ongoing investments in our customer proposition and further development of our formats and assortment will continue to result in improving sales trends."

Please follow this link:
https://www.ahold.com/Media/Ahold-Q3-2014-Results.htm to watch a video interview with Jeff Carr, Ahold CFO.

Full Q3 2014 Report and Q3 2014 Presentation attached as PDF to this message.