Hot Topic Inc. said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter profit jumped 34 percent as lower costs offset a drop in sales.

For the quarter ended Feb. 2, Hot Topic reported net income of $11.9 million (27 cents per share), a 34 percent jump from $8.9 million (20 cents) from the same period a year earlier beating Wall Street’s expectation of 26 cents per share, according to Thomson Financial.

Sales for the teen specialty retailer fell 8 percent to $221 million, falling short of analysts’ predictions of $225 million.

Same-store sales fell 6.3 percent while the cost of goods dropped 12 percent and selling, general and administrative expenses fell almost 9 percent.

For the year, net income jumped 18 percent to $16 million (36 cents per share) while sales fell 3 percent to $728 million.

The struggling retailer also said Wednesday that it would likely record a 3-to-6-cent-per share loss in the first quarter which is higher than the 1-cent-per-share loss Wall Street anticipated.

Shares in Hot Topic closed down 4.7 percent to $4.31 Wednesday.