Leslie’s Poolmart Loses $1.23 Million in Quarter

Leslie’s Poolmart, a Chatsworth retailer of swimming pool supplies that typically loses money in the winter, reported a fourth-quarter 1991 loss of $1.23 million.

The loss in the quarter ended Dec. 31, which compared with a year-earlier loss of $1.8 million, came on a 12% increase in Leslie’s sales, to $9.71 million from $8.69 million.

For all of last year, Leslie reported a $983,000 profit, up sharply from $35,000 the previous year. The latest earnings would have been higher except for a onetime, $1.78-million charge that Leslie’s incurred earlier in 1991. The company’s annual sales climbed 12%, to $82.6 million from $73.7 million.

Leslie’s operates 104 stores in 23 states. Nineteen of the stores were opened last year, and the company said its “same store” sales--sales of stores open at least a year--rose 4% during 1991.