US confectioner Hershey has raised its full-year profit outlook despite reporting a 10% drop in third-quarter earnings.

In the three months to the end of September, net profit slumped 79.8% to US$176.7m, while EBIT fell 6% to $301.7m.

The quarter included charges of $68.4m related to its ongoing expansion and realignment efforts.

However, consolidated net sales amounted to $1.75bn, an 8% increase on the prior year.

“The Hershey Company delivered another good quarter of core brand growth driven by solid performance within key retail channels,” said John Bilbrey, president and CEO. “Our performance was solid in the convenience and dollar store channels with volume and unit trends positive.”

Hershey said it expects EPS for the current year to be in the range of $3.22 to $3.25. It had previously said it would earn $3.17 to $3.23 per share.

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Hershey’s share price was down 0.31% to $69.90 at 11:53 ET.