J.C. Penney Q3 Loss Wider Than Expected - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Struggling retailer J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (JCP) incurred a net loss of $489 million or $1.94 per share in the third quarter, which included a $0.73 loss associated with the tax valuation allowance. This compares with the year-ago period's loss of $123 million, or $0.56 per share.

On an adjusted basis, quarterly net loss stood at $457 million, or $1.81 per share, excluding the restructuring and management transition charges, primary pension plan expense, and net gain on the sale of a non-operating asset. On average, 19 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected loss per share of $1.72 for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.

For the quarter, JCPenney recorded $2.78 billion in net sales, down 5.1 percent, compared with $2.93 billion in the 2012 period, and missed consensus estimates of $2.80 billion. Comparable-store sales slipped 4.8% for the quarter, representing a sequential improvement of 710 basis points when compared with the second quarter of fiscal 2013. The quarter ended with a positive 0.9% comparable store sales gain in October.

Looking ahead to the fourth quarter of 2013, the firm sees comparable-store sales and gross margin to improve sequentially and year-over-year.