AMSTERDAM-- Royal Ahold NV said net profit for the third quarter rose 7.9%, helped by lower restructuring charges and the addition of new stores.

Net profit for the third quarter came in at EUR178 million, compared with EUR165 million in the year-ago period. The improvement was mainly the result of lower restructuring charges, while its operating margin excluding one-offs was down compared with a year earlier.

Sales were up 1.9% at EUR7.47 billion, from EUR7.33 billion in the third quarter of 2013. Its performance was supported by the U.S., where Ahold generates about 60% of sales through its Stop & Shop and Giant supermarket chains, and the addition of new stores in the Netherlands and the Czech Republic.

Ahold expects sales trends to improve in the quarters ahead, while margins in the U.S. and the Netherlands are expected to remain at current levels. "We expect that ongoing investments in our customer proposition and further development of our formats and assortment will continue to result in improving sales trends," Chief Executive Dick Boer said.

Write to Robin van Daalen at Robin.VanDaalen@wsj.com

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