Loblaw grocery empire sees profits soar by $156 million since last year

Loblaw Companies Ltd. made even more money in its third quarter this year compared to last year, according to its latest financial update.

The company that owns Loblaws, No Frills, Real Canadian Superstore and Shoppers Drug Mart released its latest earnings report on Wednesday, revealing that its net earnings available to common shareholders were $777 million for the quarter that ended on October 5.

That's $156 million (25.1 per cent) more than the $621 million the corporation made in Q3 last year.

According to the report, the company's revenue for the quarter was $18.54 billion, up from $18.27 billion last year.

Loblaw says several factors affected its boost in profits and revenue. First off, a Federal Court of Appeal decision reversed a charge related to a previous President's Choice Bank (PC Bank) commodity tax matter, positively impacting net earnings by $125 million.

The grocer says drug retail sales outperformed food retail in the quarter.

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"Drug front store sales reflected continued strength in the beauty category but were pressured by the Company's exit from certain low margin electronics categories and lower customer spend on convenience items," reads the report.

"Pharmacy and healthcare services revenue increased due to ongoing strength in acute and chronic prescriptions."

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Despite a year filled with backlash from Canadians frustrated with skyrocketing grocery prices, Loblaw says its supermarkets attracted increased customer visits in Q3.

"Food sales growth reflected the ongoing strength of the Company's Maxi and NoFrills hard discount stores, and its growing selection of multicultural foods across its banners, anchored by strong performance in the T&T banner," reads the report.

It continued to invest in expanding its network of stores, including piloting what it calls "ultra-discount" No Name stores. The low-cost grocery store has received bad reviews from some Canadians.

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Food retail sales increased by 0.5 per cent compared to 4.5 per cent last year, while drug retail sales increased by 2.9 per cent compared to 4.6 per cent last year.

Last month, Loblaw cracked the top 50 of Canada's Most Responsible Companies in 2025.