Anaheim-based teen clothes retailer Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. reversed a slump with a better-than-expected 14% rise in April sales at stores open at least a year.
Foothill Ranch-based Wet Seal Inc., the county’s other major retailer, reported a 17% gain in April same-store sales, marking slower growth than the rebounding girls chain has seen in the past year.
Pacific Sunwear easily beat Wall Street expectations of 5% growth in April same-store sales.
The company’s dominant PacSun surfwear stores led the gain with a 14.6% increase. Its smaller d.e.m.o. chain of hip hop stores rose 9.5%.
The April numbers mark a reversal for Pacific Sunwear. Same-store sales through April slumped nearly 2%, dragged down by poor showings in March and February.
Pacific Sunwear said its comfortable with the high-end of its profit guidance for the quarter through April. Results are due May 11.
Shares of Pacific Sunwear, which counts a market value of $1.7 billion, were up 4.6% in trading Thursday.
Wet Seal, which runs The Wet Seal chain for girls and Arden B for women, came in below Wall Street expectations of 19.5% April same-store growth.
The company, which has been working on a turnaround, is facing tougher comparisons from a year ago. Last April, Wet Seal’s same-store sales grew 35%.
Wet Seal said it expects a “modest” single-digit same-store sales increase in May.
Shares of Wet Seal, which counts a market value of $370 million, were off about 4.7% in trading Thursday.
