Cool Weather Dampens Wet Seal’s Sales, Leaving Net Static

Casual apparel retailer Wet Seal Inc., wrestling with a slowdown in sales because of unusually cool weather in California this year, reported Wednesday that net income was unchanged for the first quarter.

The Foothill Ranch company, which has more than a third of its stores in the state, had warned last month that its earnings for the first three months might fail to meet analysts’ projections.

Wet Seal posted net income of $3.5 million, or 25 cents a share, for the first quarter ended May 2, unchanged from a year ago. Sales totaled $104.8 million, up 10% from $95.6 million. But sales in stores open at least a year, a key industry indicator, declined 3%, the company reported.

Analysts earlier had projected earnings of 28 cents per share.

The company said it opened 21 stores in the first quarter of fiscal 1998, and plans to open 75 in the year. At the end of the first quarter, Wet Seal operated 407 stores, compared with 362 in the prior year.

The stock closed Wednesday at $26.06 a share, down $1.06.