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Big Lots raises full-year earnings outlook range

AP ONLINE

Posted: 2009-05-28 07:48:00

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Discount retailer Big Lots Inc. lifted its fiscal full-year earnings from continuing operations forecast Thursday as its first-quarter profit climbed on lower expenses.

The Columbus, Ohio-based company now expects net income of $1.85 to $1.95 per share. Its prior outlook was for profit between $1.75 and $1.90 per share.

Big Lots said its revised guidance assumes same-store sales will be flat to down 1 percent.

Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least two years, are a key indicator of retailer performance since they measure growth at existing stores rather than newly opened ones.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, whose estimates typically exclude one-time items, expect full-year net income of $1.88 per share.

The retailer also predicts second-quarter earnings from continuing operations of 26 cents to 32 cents per share. The outlook assumes same-store sales will drop 1 percent to 3 percent.

Analysts predict second-quarter profit of 30 cents per share.