Home Lags as Dillard's Logs Quarterly Turnaround
Net Income Sharply Increased in the Quarter
By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 11/27/2006
Little Rock, Ark. — Home furnishings sales lagged the general trend at Dillard's, which reported third-quarter net income of $13.6 million — a major turnaround from the net loss of $2.7 million for the same period one year ago.
Net sales were virtually unchanged, holding at $1.7 billion, as comparable-store sales declined 2%. Dillard's achieved gross margin improvement of 140 basis points, which the company attributed to fewer markdowns and to better inventory control — comp inventory declined 3%.
"Sales of juniors' and children's apparel and decorative home merchandise were significantly below trend for the period," the 327-unit department store operator said.
