Dollar Tree profit soars 59%, raises forecast

Chesapeake, Va. -- Dollar Tree reported Thursday that net income for the quarter ended April 30 rose 59% to $101 million, compared with $63.6 million in the year-ago period. The 2010 figure included a charge of $26.3 million for a retail inventory accounting change.



The retailer raised its sales and profit forecast for the rest of the year.



Revenue increased more than 14% to $1.55 billion, beating Wall Street expectations. Same-store sales rose 7.1%.



The retailer said it opened 83 stores, closed seven and expanded or moved 41 in the quarter.



For the full year, the company expects revenue between $6.5 billion and $6.63 billion, up from a previous forecast of between $6.43 billion and $6.6 billion.



On a conference call with analysts, CEO Bob Sasser said Dollar Tree the chain plans to add coolers for fresh food to 325 stores this year, up from earlier projection of 225. The move would allow perishable food in roughly half of Dollar Tree’s stores by fiscal year-end.