BUSINESS BRIEFING / RETAIL
Times Wire Reports
Abercrombie & Fitch Co., which resisted the steep discounts its competitors offered during the holiday season, reported that profit in the fourth quarter slid 68% as sales dived.
Chief Executive Mike Jeffries repeated that Abercrombie would not offer deals at the same level as its competitors.
For the quarter ended Jan. 31, the New Albany, Ohio, retailer earned $68.4 million, or 78 cents a share, down from $216.8 million, or $2.40, a year earlier. Excluding impairment charges and a tax expense, net income was $1.10 a share, beating analyst expectations by a dime.
Sales fell 19% to $998 million from $1.29 billion. Same-store sales, or sales in stores open at least a year, fell 25%.
