* Q3 operating profit 228 mln euros vs forecast 223 mln

* Says on track with cost savings

* Raises full-year operating profit guidance

* Shares up as much as 4.7 percent

(Adds detail, share price, analyst comment)

By Antonia van de Velde

BRUSSELS, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Belgian supermarket group Delhaize (DELB.BR: Quote, Profile, Research) raised its 2009 forecast for operating profit on Thursday after third-quarter earnings rose, helped by promotions, cost control and lower transport costs.

Delhaize, which generates about 70 percent of revenue in the United States, said it expected operating profit to grow between 1 and 4 percent in 2009 at stable exchange rates. It had previously forecast growth of up to 3 percent.

Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) in the July-September period rose 5.7 percent to 228 million euros ($336 million), against an average of 223 million in a Reuters poll.