Cost Plus narrows 1st-quarter loss by 75 percent as sales rise, costs fall

Cost Plus posts sharply narrower 1st-quarter loss

OAKLAND, Calif. — Home decorating retailer Cost Plus Inc. on Thursday posted a much smaller fiscal first-quarter loss, as it cut expenses and its revenue edged up.

For the three months that ended May 1, Cost Plus said its net loss was $10.3 million, or 47 cents per share, less than a quarter the size of the $41.6 million, or $1.88-per-share, loss it posted a year earlier.

Revenue rose 3 percent to $189.2 million, from $184.3 million last year.

The company cut selling, general and administrative expenses by 4 percent to $62.1 million, and it spent much less closing stores — $2.7 million. The cost of sales fell 4 percent to $131.6 million, improving merchandise margin.

“During the quarter, we made significant progress toward restoring gross margin by securing pricing concessions with our vendors that allowed for lower retail price points and reduced the need for promotional markdowns,” said President and CEO Barry Feld.

Cost Plus said revenue at its stores that had been open at least a year rose 5.6 percent for the quarter, reversing an 8.9 percent decline a year earlier. The average amount customers spent fell 1.6 percent, but the company saw 7.4 percent more customers.

For the second quarter, the company expects sales between $189 million and $192 million, and revenue at stores open at least a year to rise 5 to 7 percent.

Cost Plus shares closed Thursday trading down 55 cents, or 10.9 percent, at $4.50.