Federated Reports Strong 1992 Showing : Retailing: The department store chain earns $113 million in its first year after reorganization.

Federated Department Stores Inc. said Monday that it earned $99 million in the fourth quarter and $113 million during its first year after emerging from bankruptcy court protection.

Federated exceeded its own and analysts’ expectations for its post-reorganization performance.

Chairman Allen Questrom attributed the results to merchandising strategies that enabled Federated stores to turn over their inventories more quickly.

The company’s fourth-quarter earnings compared to profit of nearly $1.1 billion a year earlier, while the full-year results compared to year-earlier earnings of $836.4 million. However, the year-ago figures reflect one-time items associated with Federated’s reorganization, so there is no basis of comparison with the more recent numbers.

The company’s earnings translated to 78 cents a share for the fourth quarter and $1.01 a share for the year. Federated was not publicly traded in fiscal 1991, so there are no per-share earnings figures for that period.

Federated’s results reflect $19.7 million in expenses for debt refinancing and prepayment.

The retailer emerged from bankruptcy reorganization in February, 1992.

Federated said it finished the year with $567 million in cash on hand. The company said its bank lenders will allow Federated to increase its planned capital spending by $461 million the next three years to $1.2 billion for store construction and renovation and new operating technology.

The company also said it would prepay and redeem the entire $355 million principal amount of notes due Feb. 15, 2000, which represents Federated’s highest-cost debt. Federated said the prepayment will save an estimated $24 million in annual interest costs.

Janet Mangano, vice president of Burnham Securities Inc. in New York, said Federated’s showing reflects well on management.

“They’ve done an excellent job,” she said. “It isn’t just the past year. It’s the work they’ve done since filing for Chapter 11. It’s the fruits of their labor for the past three years.”

Federated’s showing was surprising because of the struggling economy and sluggish department store sales in general, said Pamela Stubing, vice president of Moody’s Investors Services in New York.

“At the beginning of the year, I didn’t think they’d do as well as they did,” she said.

Federated’s nine department store groups are Lazarus, based in Cincinnati; Bloomingdale’s and Abraham & Straus, New York; Bon Marche, Seattle; Burdines, Miami; Goldsmith’s, Memphis, Tenn.; Jordan Marsh, Boston; Rich’s, Atlanta, and Sterns, Paramus, N.J.