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Dillard’s Same-Store Sales, Earnings Decline For 4Q, Fiscal Year

2 min read

Dillard’s Inc. of Little Rock on Tuesday reported a 6 percent decline in fourth-quarter same-store sales amid what its CEO called “mall traffic declines from continued retail industry challenges.”

The publicly traded department store chain (NYSE: DDS) said quarterly net income was $56.9 million, down 32 percent from $84.0 million in the same quarter last year. Earnings per share were $1.72, down from $2.31 in the comparable period.

The results missed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of four analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $2.34 per share, according The Associated Press.

The company said the most recent fourth quarter included an after-tax asset impairment of $4.2 million, or 13 cents per share, on a cost method investment.

Net sales for the quarter were $1.94 billion, down 6 percent from the same period last year. Total merchandise sales, which exclude revenue from the company’s construction company CDI Contractors LLC of Little Rock, were $1.90 billion, down 6 percent from last year.

Same-store sales have now logged year-over-year declines in each of the last six quarters.

“Our operating results reflect another quarter of mall traffic declines from continued retail industry challenges,” Dillard’s CEO William T. Dillard said in a news release. “In response, we are ramping up our efforts to bring more distinctive brand and service experiences to Dillard’s, both in-store and online. Our strong balance sheet provides us support in these challenging times, and during the year we returned $256 million to shareholders.”

Also Tuesday, the company reported fiscal-year net income of $169.2 million, down 37 percent from $269.4 million in the previous fiscal year year. Earnings per share were $4.93, down from $6.91 per share in the previous fiscal year year.

For the year, net sales were $6.26 billion, down 5 percent from the previous fiscal year. Total merchandise sales were $6.07 billion, down 5 percent from the previous fiscal year.

Dillard’s shares have dropped nearly 7 percent since the beginning of the year. The stock has decreased 21 percent in the last 12 months.

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