Sales at stores open at least one year notably advanced in September, buoyed by back-to-school purchases, falling gas prices, and unfavorable weather conditions. A number of retailers posted better-than-expected gains, while Wal-Mart was a notable exception. The strong gains prompted many retailers to raise their Q3 earnings forecast.
Overall, same-store sales advanced by 3.8%, or up 5.1% excluding Wal-Mart Store. Wal-Mart (
WMT) said September sales rose at 1.3%, below the 2.1% rise expected by the analysts. Company’s total sales increased 12% to $31.21 billion. Costco Wholesale (
COST) posted a 4% same-store sales rise, below estimates. In contrast, Target (
TGT) posted same-store sales increase of 6.7%, exceeding estimates of 5% growth. Starbucks (
SBUX) posted a better-than-forecast 6% monthly sales increase. Pier 1 (
PIR) posted a 10.1% decline in same-store sales in September, worse than the 7.7% growth expected.
Department store and teen retailers posted strong sales in September, helped by strong fashion and cooler temperatures. Nordstrom (
JWN) reported a 13% gain in same-store sales, beating the 3.8% projection. Saks (
SKS) reported a 10%t increase in same-store sales, above the 3.8% estimate. J.C. Penney (
JCP) rebounded in September with a 10.2% gain in same-store sales, better than the 5.2% estimate. Abercrombie & Fitch (
ANF) had a 10% gain in same-store sales, higher than the 5.5% estimate. Federated Department Stores Inc. (
FD) said same-store sales rose 6.2%, above the 5.5% estimate. Limited Brands Inc.''s (
LTD) same-store sales jumped 12%, much better than the 7.7% analysts anticipated.
The laggards included Gap Inc. and Pier 1 Imports Inc., whose sales continue to languish. Pier 1 (
PIR) posted a 10.1% decline in same-store sales in September, worse than the 7.7% growth expected. Gap (
GPS) posted a 3% drop in same-store sales, though better than the 3.6% decline that analysts projected.
| 2006 SAME-STORE SALES |
| Company | Ticker | September | Augest | July | June | May | April | March |
| Apparel Retailers |
| Abercrombie & Fitch | ANF | 10.00% | 6.00% | 3.00% | -4.00% | 3.00% | 6.50% | 31.00% |
| Aeropostale | ARO | 8.50% | 3.30% | -1.90% | 5.30% | -1.10% | 8.40% | -9.30% |
| AmericanEagle | AEOS | 19.00% | 11.00% | 7.00% | 11.00% | 11.00% | 19.00% | 3.00% |
| AnnTaylor | ANN | 5.80% | 1.90% | 5.10% | 12.50% | 12.00% | 10.90% | 0.80% |
| Bebe | BEBE | 15.30% | 12.50% | 10.00% | 3.50% | 1.60% | 5.70% | 4.10% |
| Buckle | BKE | 8.70% | -8.50% | 5.90% | -5.90% | -3.80% | 1.00% | -3.70% |
| Cato | CTR | 3.00% | 4.00% | 1.00% | -3.00% | -2.00% | 2.00% | -4.00% |
| CharmingShoppes | CHRS | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA |
| Chico's | CHS | 2.10% | -2.60% | 4.90% | 5.10% | 7.20% | 5.40% | 8.40% |
| Children'sPlace, The | PLCE | 20.00% | 12.00% | 15.00% | 14.00% | 18.00% | 22.00% | 6.00% |
| Christopher & Banks | CBK | 9.00% | 5.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 8.00% | 13.00% | -6.00% |
| CitiTrends | CTRN | 8.30% | 13.70% | 7.70% | 4.30% | 10.80% | 21.00% | 12.80% |
| Claires | CLE | 1.00% | 1.00% | 2.00% | 2.00% | 4.00% | 9.00% | -3.00% |
| DebShops | DEBS | 6.80% | -7.70% | -9.60% | -4.90% | 1.40% | 4.00% | -1.10% |
| Dillards | DDS | 0.00% | -1.00% | -3.00% | -1.00% | 3.00% | 2.00% | -1.00% |
| DressBarn | DBRN | 13.00% | 2.00% | 5.00% | 6.00% | 9.00% | 15.00% | 2.00% |
| Federated Dept. | FD | 6.20% | 3.80% | 3.30% | 1.70% | 9.20% | -0.80% | 1.00% |
| Gap | GPS | -3.00% | -7.00% | -4.00% | -6.00% | -6.00% | -3.00% | 13.00% |
| Gottschalks | GOT | 1.00% | -1.10% | -0.70% | 0.30% | 2.80% | 0.30% | -3.60% |
| Guess | GES | 11.30% | 4.00% | 10.70% | 11.70% | 20.00% | 22.60% | 8.10% |
| Gymboree | GYMB | 20.00% | 17.00% | 6.00% | 9.00% | 24.00% | 19.00% | 10.00% |
| Hot Topic | HOTT | -7.30% | -6.00% | -5.50% | -3.40% | -6.00% | -6.50% | -12.70% |
| J.C. Penney | JCP | 3.80% | -0.50% | 3.60% | 4.30% | 11.10% | 2.60% | -1.00% |
| Jo-AnnStores | JAS | -3.60% | -2.90% | -6.60% | 8.50% | -4.20% | -5.40% | -3.10% |
| Jos.A.Bank | JOSB | 2.70% | -6.10% | 15.90% | 8.50% | 7.10% | 17.80% | 4.40% |
| Kohl's | KSS | 16.30% | 5.20% | 5.90% | 7.10% | 3.10% | 13.40% | 3.70% |
| LimitedBrands | LTD | 12.00% | 9.00% | 5.00% | 3.00% | 7.00% | 2.00% | 5.00% |
| Men'sWearhouse | MW | NA | NA | 2.00% | 3.70% | 5.00% | 8.80% | 0.90% |
| MotherWorks | MWRK | 10.60% | 5.00% | 3.90% | 6.20% | 5.50% | 6.60% | 2.20% |
| Nordstrom | JWN | 13.40% | 7.10% | 5.30% | 6.90% | 7.80% | 7.30% | 2.20% |
| Pacific Sunwear | PSUN | -2.40% | -9.40% | -10.60% | -2.70% | -2.60% | -14.00% | -10.90% |
| Ross Stores | ROST | 6.00% | 3.00% | 1.00% | 5.00% | 5.00% | 9.00% | 4.00% |
| Saks | SKS | 10.00% | 3.30% | 2.40% | 4.70% | 1.10% | 2.20% | -6.60% |
| SteinMart | SMRT | 4.80% | -2.80% | -5.90% | 0.90% | 1.00% | NA | NA |
| Talbots | TLB | -5.10% | 3.00% | 1.30% | NA | NA | 10.80% | -3.40% |
| TJX | TJX | 9.00% | 4.00% | 4.00% | 4.00% | 4.00% | 1.00% | 2.00% |
| Drug Stores |
| CVS | CVS |
5.70% |
8.90% | 8.80% | NA | 8.40% | 14.00% | 9.40% |
| Walgreen | WAG | 8.50% | 10.60% | 9.00% | 9.00% | 9.80% | 2.00% | 1.40% |
| Wholesale Stores |
| BJ's Wholesale Club | BJ | -0.90% | 2.30% | 1.90% | -0.10% | 4.20% | 2.10% | 3.10% |
| Costco | COST | 4.00% | 8.00% | 7.00% | 6.00% | 10.00% | 7.00% | 7.00% |
| Family Dollar | FDO | 2.20% | 4.00% | 7.50% | 3.60% | 4.50% | 5.90% | 1.40% |
| Shoe Stores |
| DSW | DSW | NA | 2.00% | 2.20% | NA | NA | 4.20% | NA |
| Payless Shoesource | PSS | NA | NA | 2.20% | NA | NA | NA | NA |
| FinishLine | FINL | NA | -6.60 | NA | NA | -0.80% | NA | NA |
| Discount Retailers |
| Target | TGT | 6.70% | 2.80% | 3.00% | 4.80% | 5.70% | 10.40% | 2.20% |
| Wal-Mart Stores | WMT | 1.30% | 2.70% | 2.40% | 1.20% | 2.30% | 6.80% | 1.40% |
| Pier1 Imports | PIR | -10.10% | -9.10% | -14.90% | -18.40% | -6.60% | -2.00% | -2.00% |
| Sharper Image | SHRP | -21.00% | -22.00% | -23.00% | -26.00% | -36.00% | -23.00% | -29.00% |
| Miscellaneous |
| BigLots | BLI |
-1.40% | NA | 5.20% | NA | NA | NA | NA |
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