Tops Holding Corporation, the parent of Tops Markets, has said cost-cutting was behind a jump in the US retailer’s third-quarter profits.

For the three-month period ending 8 October, Tops posted an operating income of US$20.7m, up from US$6.4m in the same period in 2010. Net income was US$6.4m, compared to a loss of US$7.5m in the same-year period, although last year’s third-quarter was hit by the January 2010 purchase of local rival Penn Traffic for US$85m.

Net sales rose from US$519.8m last year to US$538.6m this year, while inside sales were up 1.5% to US$491m. Same-store sales rose by 2.1%.

The quarter included a US$2.4m reduction in wage and benefit expenses made during the first half of 2011 and a US$1.6m cut in IT resources, the company said.

Frank Curci, Tops’ president and CEO, said: “Our strategy to provide our customers with a wide variety of choices and great savings opportunities, combined with the successful integration of our Penn Traffic acquisition and our focus on operating efficiencies, drove our solid sales growth and a dramatic increase in operating income in the quarter.”

The nine-month results showed net sales rose from US$1.7bn to US$1.8bn. Operating income was US$53.2m, up from US$8.9m last year, while net income was US$4.6m, compared to a US$13.1m loss in 2010.

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Tops Markets has 125 corporate and five franchise locations in New York and Pennsylvania.

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