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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Limited Brands' first-quarter profit dropped 46 percent, but despite concerns about gas prices and the slumping housing market curtailing people's spending, some other retailers aren't hurting as badly.
Just over a week after Limited Brands Inc. said it would sell its remaining apparel divisions, the retailer reported Wednesday that its earnings were hurt by lower-than-anticipated sales and margins across all its brands, particularly Victoria's Secret. The company also cut its full-year earnings outlook.
But even as the nation's retailers reported their worst same-store sales performance on record in April, blaming economic woes along with an early Easter and cold weather, apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co. reported 7 percent earnings growth in the first quarter, and discount retailer Target Corp.'s profits jumped 18 percent.
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