Wet Seal Has 23% Rise in Sales, 14% Increase in Net Income

Wet Seal Inc., a Foothill Ranch-based retailer of clothing for young women, posted a 14% increase in net income for the fourth quarter as sales rose 23%.

Net income totaled $12.2 million, or 95 cents a share, up from $8.8 million, or 63 cents a share, for the same period a year ago. Sales for the three months ended Jan. 30 rose to $145.9 million from $118.2 million. Sales in stores open at least a year, a key measure of performance, climbed 6%.

The company, whose chains include Contempo Casuals, Arden B. and Wet Seal, had said in February that it expected earnings to exceed analysts’ expectations for the second quarter in a row. At the time, analysts were predicting earnings of 81 cents a share for the quarter.

For the year, net income totaled $26 million, or $1.91 a share, up 22% from $21.3 million, or $1.53 a share, for the previous year. Sales increased 18% to $485.4 million from $412.5 million.

The financial results were disclosed after the U.S. stock markets closed. The stock was off 38 cents a share to $35.88 in Nasdaq trading.