Bebe Stores Posts Sharply Lower Income

Bebe Stores Inc. said its fiscal third-quarter net income plunged 96%, compared with the previous year, in line with analysts expectations.

The Brisbane, Calif.-based retailer of clothes for young women projected fourth- quarter earnings of 3 cents to 6 cents a share, well below the 11 cents expected by a consensus of analysts from Thomson First Call.

The news did not hurt the price of the company’s stock, which closed at $14.99, up 21 cents, in Nasdaq trading.

Bebe’s earnings for the quarter ended March 31 were $142,000, or a penny a share, compared with $3.8 million, or 15 cents, a year ago. Revenue fell 3% to $68.8 million. Sales at stores open at least a year fell 11%. The company expects comparable store sales this quarter to be in the “negative low teens.”