Macy’s Line, Acquisition Drag Down Joe’s Jeans

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Shares of Joe’s Jeans Inc. fell more than 8 percent Wednesday, a day after the apparel maker said it moved to a loss in the third quarter on declining sales of one brand and expenses related to an acquisition.

After the markets closed on Tuesday, the Commerce designer denim maker reported a net loss of $287,000 (-1 cent a share) for the quarter ended Aug. 31, compared with net income of $2.7 million (2 cents) in the same period a year earlier.

Sales fell 3 percent to $29.4 million, mainly due to the struggles of its moderately priced Else denim line made for Macy’s department stores. Net wholesale revenue fell 7 percent to $23.1 million. Retail sales rose 14 percent to $6.3 million, reflecting the opening of eight new stores. Same-store sales were down 6 percent.

The company also reported $1.3 million in expenses related to its acquisition of competitor Hudson, which closed Oct. 30.

During a conference call with analysts, Chief Executive Marc Crossman noted that its department store segment was up 7 percent overall, driven by a 43 percent increase in sales with upscale retailer Nordstrom and “double-digit” increases from retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus.

“Our quarter marked a transition for us as we worked toward the completion of the acquisition of Hudson,” Crossman said.

Shares on Wednesday closed down 10 cents, or 8.5 percent, to $1 on the Nasdaq.