Whole Foods to Post Charge From Hurricane

Whole Foods Market Inc. said Wednesday that it expected to record a one-time charge in its fourth quarter for any uninsured losses resulting from Hurricane Katrina.

It did not give an estimate for the charge, but it did say that it had property, flood, casualty and business-interruption insurance coverage. Whole Foods executives were not available to give further details.

The company, which had sales of $3.9 billion in fiscal 2004, said its fourth-quarter sales would be hurt by $5 million to $6 million after Hurricane Katrina forced the retailer to close several stores in Florida and Louisiana.

Whole Foods said it had not had access to two of its Louisiana stores since the storm and was assuming that both stores had significant structural damage as well as a complete loss of inventory.

Whether those stores, in New Orleans and Metairie, will reopen is unknown.

Whole Foods, the largest natural and organic foods retailer in the United States, has 171 stores in the U.S., Canada and Britain.

The company said it had started working with its insurer to assess damages, a process that could take several months in the case of the New Orleans and Metairie stores.

Whole Foods announced the charge after the close of regular trading, when shares fell 49 cents to $129.26. Shares were little changed after hours.