Dillard's Inc. saw its per-share profit rise nearly 3.5% in the first quarter, despite a 2.4% drop in net income.
After markets closed Wednesday, the Little Rock department store chain reported net income of $78.6 million for the quarter that ended May 4, down from $80.5 million in the same period a year ago. On a per-share basis, though, it reported profit of $2.99 compared with $2.89 last year, for a gain of 3.46%.
Its net income included a pretax gain of $7.4 million related to the sale of two stores, Dillard's said in a news release.
Dillard's topped the average earnings estimate of $2.80 per share from five analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
Revenue rose 1% from last year to $1.47 billion. Net sales include operations of the company's construction business, CDI Contractors LLC, as well as merchandise sales.
Total merchandise sales, which exclude CDI, grew 1.4% in the quarter, down from 2% last year. Sales at stores open at least a year, considered a key indicator of a retailer's health, remained flat compared with a 2% increase in last year's first quarter.
Companywide, sales were strongest in juniors' and children's apparel, followed by home, furniture and men's apparel and accessories, Dillard's said in the news release. Sales of shoes and cosmetics performed below the company average sales trend.
Dillard's strongest sales occurred in its eastern region, the release stated, followed by the central and western regions.
The retailer operates 261 stores and 28 clearance centers in 29 states, in addition to online sales at dillards.com.
The company's shares closed Wednesday at $63.39, down 62 cents, or 0.97%, on the New York Stock Exchange. About an hour after the quarterly results were released, however, shares dropped to $58.49, about $4.90 or 7.73%, in after hours trading.
Dillard's shares have traded between $55.73 and $98.75 in the past year. They have risen 5% since the start of the year.
Department store Macy's, Inc. also reported quarterly earnings Wednesday.
The Cincinnati-based retailer posted its sixth-consecutive quarter of rising comparable store sales thanks in part to another doubling of online sales.
Macy's reported a first quarter profit of $136 million, or 44 cents per share. That exceeded Wall Street's per-share expectations of 31 cents, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research.
Revenue was $5.5 billion, just shy of expectations.
Macy's stuck to its full-year earnings projections of between $3.05 and $3.25 per share, about in line with expectations.
Macy's shares fell 10 cents to close Wednesday at $21.70.
Information for this article was contributed by The Associated Press.
Business on 05/16/2019