Tel Aviv, Nov 18 - Israeli food company Strauss Group said on Tuesday its net profit jumped in the third quarter, boosted by capital gains from the sale of a stake in its coffee operations and by higher sales.
Strauss posted quarterly net profit of 248.5 million shekels ($63 million), or 2.35 shekels per diluted share, compared with 62.7 million shekels, or 0.59 shekel a share, a year earlier.
Excluding one-time items, net profit in the quarter rose to 96.3 million shekels from 66 million.
In September, Strauss sold a 25.1 percent stake in its coffee operations to private equity firm TPG Capital for $293 million.
Quarterly sales grew 4.5 percent to 1.65 billion shekels.
Its coffee sales rose 13.3 percent in the quarter to 861.8 million shekels, boosted especially by its operations in former Soviet countries, and in Israel, Poland and Brazil.
Operating profit for its coffee business rose to 79.4 million shekels from 66.3 million a year earlier.
Strauss, a maker of snacks, fresh foods and coffee, is Israel's second-largest food and beverage company.
It is a market leader in roast and ground coffee in central and eastern Europe and the second-largest coffee company in Brazil, where it has a 13.8 percent market share. ($1 = 3.93 shekels)