New York, April 29, 2015 -- Moody's Investors Service today said SUPERVALU Inc.'s (B1/stable) strong financial results for the fourth quarter ending February 28, 2015 are a credit positive. The company reported its 6th consecutive quarter of positive Save-A-Lot network identical store sales growth with a strong 3.6% identical store sales growth in the fourth quarter driven by traffic and higher average ticket. The company also reported a fifth consecutive positive identical store sales growth for its retail store network with identical store sales growth at 1.1% for the fourth quarter. The company also began supplying select Haggen stores in the Pacific Northwest through its Independent Business segment and we expect the supply contract with Haggen to positively impact the bottom line. Overall operating margins were also fairly stable compared to fiscal 2014 with a slight improvement in the fourth quarter despite price investments. The company continues to post steady operational improvement, and we expect the gains to be sustainable and result in improved credit metrics. The company plans to grow EBITDA every year over the next five years.

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