July 29 - Packaged and fresh food distributor Sysco SYY.N beat analysts' estimates for fourth-quarter revenue and profit on Tuesday, helped by improvement in its U.S. operations.

The company, which supplies to chains such as KFC and Subway, has been grappling with an uneven recovery in restaurant industry traffic as looming economic uncertainties prompted consumers to increasingly cook meals at home.

Sysco's U.S. foodservice segment, its largest business, posted sales of $14.76 billion during the quarter ended June 28, up 2.4% over the year earlier. The segment had seen a 0.7% increase in the preceding quarter.

The company is also trying to cut costs through measures such as renegotiation of supplier contracts to procure raw materials at lower prices.

To lower shipping expenses, it has introduced programs such as "Sysco-to-go", which requires customers to pick up orders directly from its stores.

On an adjusted basis, it earned $1.48 per share during the fourth quarter, beating analysts' average estimate of $1.39 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Sysco's total sales rose 2.8% to $21.14 billion, also ahead of the estimate of $21.03 billion.

The Houston, Texas-based company forecast fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings per share to be between $4.50 and $4.60. Analysts were expecting a profit of $4.67 per share.

The company's shares were down 3% in early trading.

(Reporting by Anshi Sancheti in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)

((Anshi.Sancheti@thomson.reuters.com))