KOHL’S BEATS THIRD-QUARTER EXPECTATIONS

Kohl’s Corp surprised analysts as its third-quarter earnings beat expectations, even though the retailer reported an approximately 15 percent loss in profit. Overall for the quarter ended Oct. 31, Kohl’s reported a profit of $120 million, or 63 cents a share, down from $142 million, or 70 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding a loss on the extinguishment of debt, adjusted per-share earnings were 75 cents a share; many analysts had expected those earnings to be closer to 69 cents a share.

Sales edged up 1.2% to $4.43 billion, which was attributed primarily to strong-back-to-school buying. Other seasonal business was hurt by unusual weather and other factors.

One of the nation’s largest retailers, Kohl’s is focusing on selling more national brands, as well as creating more savings and promotion opportunity in a bid to increase growth over the next few years.

As of 9:30am, Kohl’s stock had increased about seven percent.