Jul 1, 2004 12:31 PM, from staff and wire reports

Omaha NE-based ConAgra Foods Inc reported a 41 percent increase in profit, buoyed by improvement in retail foods, an extra week of sales, and reduced taxes.

The packaged food company earned $212 million in the fiscal fourth quarter ended May 30, versus $150 million in the same period a year earlier.

ConAgra, which purchased back 7 million shares in the fourth quarter, predicts that its current fiscal year “will show a solid EPS performance and growth in sales and operating profits from its current business segments.”

Sales increased 9 percent to $4.0 billion, and comparable sales rose 4 percent in the fourth quarter.