Cary-based convenience store chain The Pantry announced this morning that it has named Dennis G. Hatchell to be its new president and CEO effective March 5.

Hatchell was previously vice chairman of Alex Lee, a holding company for Lowe's Food Stores, Merchants Distributors and Institution Food House.

He will take over from Edwin Holman, who has been the interim CEO since Terrance Marks resigned in October to become the CEO of the Hooters restaurant chain.

Holman will remain chairman of the board. Hatchell also joins the board.
 

The Pantry reported a net loss of $2.9 million, or 13 cents a share, in the first quarter this morning.

That was a smaller loss than the $12.2 million, or 54 cents a share that the Cary-based convenience store chain reported in last year's first quarter.

Excluding impairment charges and loss on extinguishment of debt, the net loss for the first quarter of fiscal 2012 was $2.6 million or $0.11 per share.

Interim CEO Edwin Holman said in a release that the company benefited from lower expenses and a better pricing environment.

"As we continue revising our pricing strategy to position the company for the longer term, we remain focused on improving our sales trends, expense management, and debt reduction.”

The Pantry has more than 1,600 stores throughout the Southeast, primarily under the Kangaroo Express brand. Merchandise sales at those stores increased 2 percent in the first quarter.

The Pantry reported fourth quarter results this morning that were below analyst expectations, as the Cary convenience store chain continued to face sluggish merchandise sales at its stores.

Excluding one-time charges, the Cary convenience store chain reported net income of $8.4 million, or 37 cents a share, compared to 43 cents a share during the same period a year ago.

Net income for the fiscal year 2011 was $17.5 million  or $0.78 per share, compared to earnings per share of $0.97 in the prior year.

That was below 99 cents per share, the consensus among analysts who follow the company.

The Pantry has more than 1,600 stores throughout the Southeast, primarily under the Kangaroo Express brand. Merchandise sales at those stores decreased .8 percent in the fourth quarter, compared to a 7.7 percent increase during the same period a year ago.

For the year, merchandise sales were down .2 percent.

In a statement, interim CEO Edwin Holman said next year would be a transitional period for the company and that actions are needed to improve comparable store sales.

He also said the company would focus on a pricing strategy that is intended to both improve merchandise sales and align gasoline volumes with industry trends.

Edwin J. Holman, who takes over as interim CEO of The Pantry on Oct. 5, will be paid an annual salary of $700,000 a year, the Cary convenience-store chain disclosed in a regulatory filing Tuesday.

Holman is taking over for Terrance Marks, who announced last month that he was leaving The Pantry to become CEO of the Hooters restaurant chain in Atlanta. Marks received $1.5 million in compensation last year.

Holman has been a member of The Pantry's board of directors since October 2005. He took over as chairman of the board shortly after Marks was named CEO in September 2009.

Holman will also receive a restricted stock grant valued at $100,000.

The Pantry CEO Terrance Marks is leaving the Cary convenience store chain to take the same position with Hooters of America, the restaurant chain known for its Hooter Girls waitresses.

The Pantry announced Monday that Marks would depart within 60 days. Monday's release said Marks was returning to Atlanta to be closer to his family but did not disclose his new job.

In today's release put out by Hooters, Marks said the opportunity to contribute to a great brand like Hooters "is extremely energizing to me." Take that Kangaroo Express.

Hooters is the franchisor and operator of 435 restaurants in 44 states and 28 foreign countries.

Terrance M. Marks, The Pantry CEO whose has led the convenience-store chain’s aggressive turnaround strategy in recent years, is resigning to take a position in Atlanta.

The Cary-based company said in a release that Marks will depart within the next 60 days and be replaced on an interim basis by Edwin Holman, chairman of The Pantry’s Board of Directors.

Since taking over as CEO in September 2009, Marks had gotten generally high marks for his efforts to remodel some of The Pantry’s stores and add more fresh foods to its product offerings.

It will be important for The Pantry to find a replacement who can maintain that momentum, said Ben Brownlow, an analyst with Morgan Keegan.

“I think it does create some uncertainty,” Brownlow said. “Departing now isn’t the ideal time.”

Pantry officials declined to comment today beyond what was in the release.

Stung by high gasoline prices and high unemployment in many of its markets, The Pantry reported third quarter earnings Tuesday that missed Wall Street estimates.

The Cary-based convenience store chain, which has more than 1,600 stores throughout the Southeast, reported net income, excluding one-time charges, of $21 million, or 93 cents per share, compared to 89 cents per share during the same period a year ago.

That was below the consensus among analysts who follow the company of $1.22 per share.

Merchandise sales at Pantry stores decrease 1.5 percent, compared to a 7.7 percent increase during the same period a year ago.

Rising oil prices have been driving up the cost of gas, and consumers have responded by spending less on other things.

The Pantry is looking to sell 114 of its stores in the Southeast, including 41 in North Carolina.

The move was announced in a press release last month put out by NRC Realty & Capital Advisors, which is assisting The Pantry with the sale.

The Pantry officials declined to comment beyond what was included in NRC's release.

The company, which is based in Cary, operates 1,659 stores in 13 states. Most operate under the Kangaroo Express brand.

The properties up for sale include owned and leased stores. All but one include both a convenience store and a gas station.

The list includes 28 sites in Florida, 3 in Alabama, 7 in Georgia, 3 in Kentucky, 5 in Mississippi, 12 in South Carolina and 4 in Tennessee.

Twenty-two of the sites are being offered in packages ranging from two to eight stores each in five markets.

The deadline to bid on the properties is Aug. 2.

The Pantry reported a second quarter net loss this morning, but the company did see merchandise sales and its profit from gas rise during the quarter.

The Cary-based chain of 1,659 convenience stores mostly under the Kangaroo Express banner reported that its net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2010 was $269,000, or 1 cent per share. However, sales of in-store merchandise -- which have been the focus of an ongoing remodeling campaign by the company -- rose by 2 percent in stores open at least a year.

The company also benefitted from rising fuel profit margins. In the second quarter, the amount the Pantry made on gasoline rose by 22 percent compared with the first quarter of this year and 5.4 percent conpared with the second quarter of 2010. However, with Americans watching their money and driving less, the company sold fewer gallons this quarter -- roughly 4 percent less than the second quarter last year.

"Our improving execution contributed to expanded gross margins, higher productivity, and ultimately Adjusted EBITDA growth, despite persistently rising fuel prices," said CEO Terrance Marks in a statement released this morning. "Of equal importance, we continued to make progress against our core strategic initiatives of foodservice expansion and productivity growth."

Cary-based convenience store chain The Pantry reported a first-quarter loss this morning, blaming rising fuel prices and bad winter weather in Deember for some of the decline.

The company operates more than 1,600 convenience stores throughout the Southeast primarily under the Kangaroo Express brand. Officials also pointed to some highlights of the quarter, including higher merchandise sales at stores open for more than a year and its ongoing fresh food initiative, which it has been piloting in Triangle stores and is now expanding company-wide.

For the first quarter ended Dec. 30, 2010, The Pantry reported a net loss of 12.2 million, or 54 cents per share. The company also adjusted its 2011 guidance, to $1.80 to $1.84 per share.

CEO Terry Marks told investors, analysts and reporters on a conference call this morning that the rising fuel prices and continued economic depression are hitting home for The Pantry's core customers.

"Rising fuel prices have their greatest impact on that segment of the population that is struggling to make ends meet," he said.