Dillard's October Sales Fall 5 Percent

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) _ Dillard's Inc., an apparel and home furnishings retailer, on Thursday said October same-store sales declined 5 percent as business in its men's area was lower than expected.

Thursday, November 4th 2004, 12:58 pm

By: News On 6

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) _ Dillard's Inc., an apparel and home furnishings retailer, on Thursday said October same-store sales declined 5 percent as business in its men's area was lower than expected.

The company reported sales for the four weeks ended Oct. 30 of $456.7 million, down from $481.3 million last October. Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call expected a 0.4 percent decrease in October for stores open more than a year.

Sales for the third-quarter hit $1.69 billion, down 4 percent from $1.76 billion in the year-ago period. Analysts expect the company to post earnings of 22 cents per share on revenue of $1.76 billion.

The company said October sales were the strongest in its Western region, exceeding the average sales performance in total stores. The Eastern region was slightly above trend, the company said. Sales in the Central region were below trend.

On a product level, cosmetics, accessories, shoes and lingerie exceeded expectations. But weaker sales came from the home, women's and junior's categories. Sales in the men's areas came in ``significantly below trend.''