Company Profile: Pathmark Stores, Inc. (PTMK)

Pathmark is a leading supermarket chain in the Northeast, operating 144 stores in the densely populated New York-New Jersey and Philadelphia metropolitan areas. Pathmark pioneered the development of the large supermarket/drugstore format in the Northeast. Within its service areas, Pathmark believes it is the largest supermarket chain operating under a single banner in terms of sales, which amounted to $3.9 billion and resulted in net income of $13.9 million for the 52 weeks ended February 1, 2003. Its stores are among the most productive in the industry. During fiscal 2002, they generated sales per store and sales per selling square foot of $28.2 million and $724, respectively, compared to industry averages of approximately $19.2 million and $563, respectively. Their stores average approximately 52,300 square feet in size and are approximately 19% larger than the average U.S. supermarket.