Jean Coutu Q3 sales up 1.7%

VARENNES, Québec — The Jean Coutu Group reported Thursday revenues of $530.3 million for the third quarter ended Nov. 28, 2015, up 1.7%.

 

Jean Coutu Group attributed the increase to the overall market growth despite the deflationary impact of generic drugs. Generic drugs reached 69.8% of prescriptions during the third quarter of fiscal year 2016 compared with 68.1% of prescriptions for the comparable period of the previous fiscal year.

 

“We are satisfied with the results of the third quarter of fiscal 2016, which demonstrate the relevance of our strategies and the strength of our organization, despite the restrictive regulatory context which prevails in our industry," stated François Coutu, president and CEO Jean Coutu Group. “In the next few months, we will continue to capitalize on dynamic strategic initiatives to maintain our growth and sustain our leadership.” 

 

On a same-store basis, the Jean Coutu Group network's retail sales increased by 0.1%, pharmacy sales decreased by 1.6% and front-end sales increased by 2.4%, compared with the corresponding period last year. Sales of non-prescription drugs, which represented 9.1% of total retail sales, increased by 3.9% compared with 1.6% for the corresponding period of fiscal year 2015.

 

During the third quarter of fiscal year 2016, there was one franchised store relocated and one store was closed. Also, three stores were significantly renovated or expanded.

 

As at Nov. 28, 2015, total selling square footage of the Jean Coutu Group network amounted to 3.2 million square feet, up 1.6%.