Metro Inc. has posted a $144.4-million net profit in its fiscal third quarter, beating analyst estimates.
The Montreal-based grocery store operator says it had $1.43 per share in diluted net earnings, six cents per share above a consensus estimate.
Metro says its revenue for the quarter was up 3.8 per cent compared with the same time last year, rising to $3.7-billion.
Part of the improvement was due to Metro's stake in Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., which operates convenience stores in Canada, the United States and Europe.
Metro's share of Couche-Tard's earnings increased to $13.6-million in the quarter, about double the $6.9-million reported a year earlier.