Nebraska's The Buckle leads a weak retail sector in August

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By staff and wire reports

Many of the nation’s retailers struggled with a sluggish back-to-school season, according to August sales reported Thursday, but not Nebraska’s own The Buckle, headquartered in Kearney, and the nation’s largest retailer, Wal-Mart.

Teen retailer The Buckle Inc. said Thursday its same-store sales rose 22.4 percent in August.   The company’s stock pierced its 52-week trading high and closed at  $56.56, up $2.02, or 3.7 percent.    Soon after the open Thursday,  the  company’s stock reached $57.59.   Volume was 1.3 million shares, more than double its normal volume. 

Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, is an important indicator of a retailer’s performance since it measures growth at existing stores rather than new ones.

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Shopper Callie Evans (center) tries on a shirt and jeans at The Buckle at Westfield Gateway in this file photo. (CODY DUTY/Lincoln Journal Star)

Shopper Callie Evans (center) tries on a shirt and jeans at The Buckle at Westfield Gateway in this file photo. (CODY DUTY/Lincoln Journal Star)

The Wall Street Journal described The Buckle as the teen apparel sector’s “brightest spot” Thursday as its sales exceeded market expectations. 

Last year in August, same-store sales rose 16.7 percent.

Total sales for the four-week period ended Aug. 30 jumped 29 percent to $77.5 million from $59.9 million.   Year-to-date, same-store sales increased 25.9 percent and total sales rose 34 percent to $407.5 million from $305.3 million.

The Buckle operates 382 retail stores in 39 states compared to 364 stores in 38 states as of a year ago.

Otherwise, teen clothing chains had another month of mixed results, as some of the more value-priced chains saw strength amid weakness at higher-priced competitors. That shows even teens -- typically immune to economic fluctuations in their spending -- are trading down as their parents feel economic pressures.

Meanwhile, Wal-Mart reported a solid 3 percent gain in same-store sales, helped by sales of groceries and back-to-school products. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected a 1.6 percent increase. Including fuel, the retailer’s same-store sales rose 3.5 percent.

Mall-based apparel stores, meanwhile, remained in the doldrums. And high-end retailers Saks Inc. and Nordstrom Inc. posted weaker results as their affluent customers start to feel pinched.

“Consumers are spending on necessities and looking for value and the lowest price possible. And it’s reflective again in the results that we are seeing,” said Ken Perkins, president of research company RetailMetrics LLC.

The International Council of Shopping Centers-UBS sales tally rose 1.7 percent in August, below the 2 percent forecast.

Excluding Wal-Mart, the results were unchanged from a year ago. Last month’s pace was below the 2.3 percent average since the beginning of the industry’s fiscal year in February. The tally is based on same-store sales.