Citi Trends says weather hurt January sales, but 4Q revenue beats analyst estimates

Citi Trends says weather hurt January sales

SAVANNAH, Ga. — Bargain clothing retailer Citi Trends Inc. said Wednesday that sales at stores open at least one year fell 8.1 percent in January as bad weather closed some stores.

The company said the bad weather hit during the last weekend in January, which is typically its third-largest volume weekend of the year.

Total sales for the quarter that ended Jan. 30, 2010, rose 15.8 percent to $169.8 million. Sales at stores open at least a year rose 1.2 percent during the fourth quarter.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters were expecting fourth-quarter revenue of $168.8 million.

The company said the issues in January are not likely “to be indicative of the trends that should be expected for the first quarter of 2010.”

The company expects to report financial earnings for the fourth quarter on March 12.

Citi Trends shares fell $1.01, or 3.3 percent, to close at $29.42 before the announcement. They fell another $1.28, or 4.4 percent, to $28.14 in late trading.