Dillard's Dec. same-store sales rise

Thursday, January 5th 2006, 9:34 am

By: News On 6

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) _ Department store operator Dillard's Inc. said Thursday that sales in stores open at least one year _ a key performance gauge called same-store sales _ rose 1 percent in December.

Wall Street had predicted a 0.2 percent advance in same-store sales, the mean estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial.

Total December sales increased 1 percent to $1.27 billion from $1.26 billion last year, Dillard's said. The retailer operates 330 stores in 29 states.

Shoe sales ``significantly'' exceeded its average sales performance for December, but sales of children's clothing, home merchandise and furniture were ``significantly'' below forecasts, the company said.