Sluggish demand leads to fall in October sales at JCPenney

07 Nov '08

4 min read

November Sales and Updated Third Quarter Earnings Outlook:
Reflecting the Company's expectation for continued sales weakness in light of consumer sentiment, management's guidance for the four-week period ending Nov. 29, 2008, is for a low-double digit decrease in comparable store sales, compared with a 5.4 percent increase during the same period last year. Comparable store sales in November will benefit from the previously discussed promotional event shift, but will be offset by the calendar shift that eliminates a full week of post-Thanksgiving sales from the reporting period.

Based on October sales results and continued strong expense control, management now expects earnings for the third quarter to be in a range of $0.53 to $0.55 per share, including a benefit of approximately $0.02 per share from the sale of non-operating real estate during the period. The Company's most recent guidance was for third quarter earnings to be in a range of $0.50 to $0.60 per share.

Management will host a live conference call and real-time webcast on Friday, Nov. 14, 2008, beginning at 9:30 a.m. ET to discuss its third quarter results. Access to the conference call is open to the press and general public in a listen-only mode. To access the conference call, please dial 877-407-0778, or 201-689-8565 for international callers, and reference the JCPenney Third Quarter Earnings Conference Call.

J. C. Penney Company Inc

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