Casual apparel retailer The Buckle Inc has reported that sales for the four-week period ended January 28, 2006 rose by 8.7 percent to $28.0 million from sales of $25.8 million in the corresponding four-week period ended January 29, 2005.
Comparable-store sales, for stores open at least one year, for the four-week period ended January 28, 2006 increased 3 percent from comparable-store sales for the prior year four-week period ended January 29, 2005.
Net sales year-to-date for the 52-week period ended January 28, 2006 increased 6.4 percent to $501.1 million from sales of $470.9 million for the same 52-week period a year ago. Comparable-store sales year-to-date increased 1.4 percent from comparable-store sales in the same 52-week period last year.
Net sales for the fourth quarter ended January 28, 2006, increased 5.3 percent to $153.4 million compared to net sales of $145.6 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2004. Comparable store net sales, for stores open at least one year, were down 0.1 percent for the 13 weeks ended January 28, 2006, compared with the 13 weeks ended January 29, 2005.
During the period, the company repurchased 51,900 shares of its common stock at an average price of $33.22 per share. These shares were purchased pursuant to the 500,000 share corporate stock repurchase program authorized by the Board of Directors on October 12, 2005.
The company has 189,600 shares remaining to be purchased to complete this authorization.
Headquartered in Kearney, Nebraska, The Buckle Inc is a retailer of casual apparel, footwear and accessories for young men and women.
The Buckle recently closed three stores, one on January 7, 2006, another on January 15, 2006 and the last on January 22, 2006. It currently operates 338 retail stores in 38 states compared to 327 stores in 38 states at this same time a year ago.