Fitch Publishes Comprehensive Report on U.S. Grocery Retailing Sector
31 July 2015 - 7:11AM
Business Wire
Fitch Ratings today published a comprehensive report on the U.S.
food retailing sector titled 'U.S. Grocery Retailing: Supermarkets
Play Defense.'
The report profiles eight of the largest grocery retail
companies. Each company report includes Fitch's assessment of the
business and financial profile, and provides a detailed capital
structure, debt organizational chart, and covenant analysis.
The report also highlights the shift in grocery market share
from traditional supermarkets toward discounters, wholesale clubs
and specialty formats. This shift will likely intensify over the
next five years as discounters and specialty natural/organic
formats continue to expand while traditional supermarkets and
independents see a reduction in store count. Consumers' willingness
to split their shopping across formats will perpetuate this trend
and reward retailers with the best prices/products.
Competition continues to drive supermarket consolidation,
leading to significant mergers among some of the largest
supermarket chains, including the acquisition by AB Acquisition LLC
of Safeway Inc. in early 2015, and the pending merger of Royal
Ahold and Delhaize Group. At the same time, weaker players are
being forced to restructure, with the July 2015 bankruptcy filing
by A&P, its second filing in five years, being the latest
example.
The following companies are profiled in the report:
--Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
--Costco Wholesale Corporation
--Target Corporation
--The Kroger Co.
--Dollar Tree, Inc.
--SUPERVALU Inc.
--Roundy's, Inc.
--99 Cents Only Stores LLC
The full report 'U.S. Grocery Retailing: Supermarkets Play
Defense; Grocery Market Share Shifting to Discount and Specialty
Formats' is available at www.fitchratings.com.
Additional information is available at
'www.fitchratings.com'.
U.S. Grocery Retailing (Supermarkets Play Defense; Grocery
Market Share Shifting to Discount and Specialty Formats)
https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=868409
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Fitch RatingsPhilip Zahn, +1-312-606-2336Senior DirectorFitch
Ratings, Inc.70 W. Madison StreetChicago, IL 60602orCarla Norfleet
Taylor, +1-312-368-3195Senior DirectororMedia RelationsAlyssa
Castelli, New York,
+1-212-908-0540alyssa.castelli@fitchratings.com