Home-goods chain disappoints

Upscale home-goods retailer Williams-Sonoma Inc. posted a higher quarterly profit, but its shares fell 4% after it forecast disappointing earnings for the current fiscal year on tough economic conditions.

The owner of the Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn and West Elm chains forecast earnings per share of $1.42 to $1.56 for the fiscal year that began Feb. 4. Analysts, on average, were expecting $1.62, according to Reuters Estimates.

For the current quarter, Williams-Sonoma said it expected results of break-even to earnings of 3 cents a share.

For the fourth quarter, Williams-Sonoma posted higher-than-expected earnings, helped by one more week of sales than a year earlier and a lower tax rate. The company had cut its outlook for the quarter in January.

Net income rose to $124.6 million, or $1.15 a share, from $121.1 million, or $1.06, a year earlier.

Revenue rose 9.5% to $1.37 billion in the fourth quarter, even as sales at stores open at least a year fell 0.1%.

For the current quarter, the company expects sales at stores to fall between 8.5% and 6%.

Shares of the San Francisco-based company fell $1.24 to $23.75.