Gap April same-store sales fall 3%, sales flat

04 May '06

2 min read

Apparel giant Gap Inc reported net sales of $1.23 billion for the four-week period ended April 29th 2006, which is flat to net sales of $1.23 billion for the same period ended April 30th 2005.

The company's comparable store sales for April 2006 decreased 3 percent compared with a 5 percent decrease in April 2005.

Comparable store sales by division for April 2006 were as follows:

• Gap North America: negative 2 percent versus negative 9 percent last year
• Banana Republic North America: positive 1 percent versus negative 6 percent last year
• Old Navy North America: negative 6 percent versus flat last year
• International: negative 3 percent versus negative 12 percent last year

"April comparable store sales improved relative to March, reflecting the impact of the shift of Easter to April this year,” said Sabrina Simmons, Senior VP, Treasury and Investor Relations. “Merchandise margins were above last year, but will likely experience pressure in May as we work through remaining Spring markdowns.”

For the 13 weeks ended April 29th 2006, total company net sales were $3.44 billion, which is a decrease of 5 percent to net sales of $3.63 billion for the same period ended April 30th 2005. The company's first quarter comparable store sales decreased 9 percent compared with a decrease of 4 percent in the first quarter of the last year.

The company announced that it expects earnings per share for the first quarter to be $0.26 to $0.27. The company reiterated that it expects year-over-year inventory per square foot to be down in the low-single digits at the end of the first quarter.

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