MONTREAL -- Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. says its earnings surged 35 per cent to a record US$435.3 million in its latest quarter as the CST Brands acquisition more than offset the negative impact of hurricanes in the U.S. south.

The Quebec-based convenience store operator, which reports in U.S. dollars, says it earned 76 cents per diluted share in the second quarter of its fiscal year, up from 57 cents or $321.5 million a year earlier.

"This is even more remarkable in light of the challenges faced by some (of) our network due to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, and the continued softness in the industry in general," Couche-Tard CEO Brian Hannasch said in a news release.

Couche-Tard said the two hurricanes reduced sales and caused property damage in Texas and Florida costing $4.8 million.

Excluding one-time charges, Couche-Tard (ATDb.TO) earned $458 million or 80 cents per share for the three months ended Oct. 15. That compared to $328 million or 58 cents per share in the prior year.

Analysts expected Couche-Tard would report 71 cents per share in adjusted profits, according to analyst Derek Dley of Canaccord Genuity.

"This was notably impressive as the company was unfavourably impacted by numerous store closures related to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma during the quarter," he wrote in a report.

 Revenues were $12.1 billion, up 44 per cent from $8.44 billion in the second quarter of fiscal 2017.

Couche-Tard said its fuel revenues were $8.8 billion, with acquisitions contributing about $1.8 billion, while higher selling prices added $819 million.

Excluding the CST network, fuel volumes for stores open at least a year decreased 0.7 per cent in the U.S. as the hurricanes caused store closures and fuel shortages. The CST network which has 666 stores in Texas suffered a 5.1 per cent decrease in same-store fuel volumes.

In Canada, fuel volumes excluding CST fell 2.3 per cent mainly due to poor weather conditions in the eastern part of the country. CST Canadian same-store volumes decreased by 6.1 per cent.

European same-store fuel volumes decreased 2.1 per cent.

Merchandise same-store sales grew 0.7 per cent in the U.S. and 1.6 per cent in Europe. Distribution challenges in Western Canada and poor weather in Eastern Canada caused a 1.6 per cent decrease in same-store sales.

Couche-Tard said it has achieved $84 million in cost savings from integrating the San Antonio-based CST Brands network. It expects to realize $150 million to $200 million in savings over three years.

The convenience store retailer purchased CST Brands and its 1,300 locations last June for US$3.4 billion.

The company also purchased and cancelled 4.4 million shares sold by Metro Inc. (MRU.TO). 

Couche-Tard's shares hit a 52-week high of C$66.42 in early Tuesday trading. They were up $2.10 or 3.27 per cent at $66.36 in later trading.