Acme's parent, the American Stores Company of Salt Lake City, will close the bidding next week.

His maternal grandfather, Cecil Whittaker Anderson, was a founder of the American Stores Company, in Philadelphia.

By 1987 American Stores Company was the largest drug retailer in the United States, but only the third-largest grocery retailer and underperforming its peers.

Albertson's, a fast-growing supermarket company based in Boise, has been trying to integrate its operation with the American Stores Company, which it bought last year.

The name American Stores was substituted for the Skaggs name in the late 1970's after an acquisition of the American Stores Company.

Acme's parent company is the American Stores Company, Salt Lake City, which operates food and drugstore chains.

But the American Stores Company, the parent of Alpha Beta, said increased efficiency from the combination would save California customers more than $40 million annually.

Morningstar just distributed its first report, for the American Stores Company, to the company's 62,000 plan participants.

It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Stores Company.

The American Stores Company said it had agreed with Federal regulators not to buy any shares of Lucky Stores Inc. until Saturday.