=DJ Hot Topic March Same-Store Sales Rise 7.1%, Zumiez Down 17.9%
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DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Hot Topic (HOTT) continued to post strong same-store sales in March, but fellow teen retailer Zumiez Inc. (ZUMZ) continued to suffer from the poor consumer spending environment.
Teen and child apparel retailers overall are expected to post an 8.7% decline in same-store sales in March. Overall, the Thomson Reuters Same Store Sales Index is expected to fall 1%, the sixth straight month of declines. Most retailers will report their same-store sales figures Thursday morning.
Hot Topic, which has now posted bigger-than-expected increases for four months, reported same-store sales rose 7.1% in March, beating estimates by analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. The young-adult retailer is expected to continue to see a boost from merchandise related to the teen vampire movie "Twilight," even as retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) rolled out its own merchandise related to the popular film last month.
The company raised its first-quarter earnings view, seeing a profit of 1 cent to 2 cents a share, up from its March view of break-even results, plus or minus one cent. Hot Topic boosted its view amid higher-than-expected same-store sales.
Zumiez, a specialty retailer of sports-related apparel, footwear and accessories for high-school and college-aged consumers, reported its same-store sales dropped 17.9% in March, worse than Wall Street expected.
The company increased its promotional efforts in the second half of 2008 to lower its inventory levels. Zumiez expects same-store sales to drop in the mid- to high-teen range in its fiscal first quarter.
Hot Topic shares rose 2.4% to $12.04 in after-hours trading, after closing up 9.6% in the regular session at $11.76. Zumiez's shares were recently unchanged in after-hours trading at $10.01.
-By John Kell, Dow Jones Newswires, 201-938-5285, john.kell@dowjones.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 08, 2009 16:19 ET (20:19 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.- - 04 19 PM EDT 04-08-09 |
