Dillard's Profit Misses Estimates, Sales Beats

(RTTNews) - Apparel and home furnishings retailer Dillard's Inc (DDS) on Monday reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $130.5 million or $3.17 per share compared with $119.1 million or $2.71 per share last year.

Revenues for the quarter were $2.14 billion compared with $2.03 billion in the prior year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimated earnings of $3.18 per share on revenues of $2.08 billion for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

The company said sales trends were notably strong in the ladies' apparel and shoes categories as well as juniors' and children's apparel, partly offset by weakness in the home and furniture category.

Dillar's comparable store sales for the quarter rose 3%, and retail gross margin was up by 103 basis point.

At January 2015, the company operated 277 Dillard's locations and 20 clearance centers.