Wet Seal Inc. again has delayed the release of its fourth quarter and 2004 results.
The Foothill Ranch-based teen retailer didn’t give a reason for the delay. The results were expected after the close of trading Tuesday. Wet Seal said it planned to apply for an extension with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Analysts expect Wet Seal to post a loss of about $15 million in the quarter, according to a poll by Thomson Financial.
Wet Seal initially was expected to release its results on March 24 before postponing them to today. A reason for the delay wasn’t given in March either.
In February, Wet Seal said it faced an informal Securities and Exchange inquiry into its second-quarter results from 2004.
Regulators have requested documents related to the 2004 sale of Wet Seal stock by Canadian lingerie retailer La Senza Corp. Montreal-based La Senza’s chairman and chief executive, Irv Teitelbaum, stepped down as Wet Seal’s longtime chairman in August to focus on expanding La Senza.
La Senza said in July it planned to sell its 3.1 million share stake in Wet Seal. The probe is focusing on the timing of the stock sale and news out of Wet Seal in early August.
Wet Seal has 401 stores. It shuttered hundreds of stores earlier this year in a bid to cut loose unprofitable ones.
Last week, the retailer reported a 36% jump in March sales from stores open at least a year. Analysts were looking for a 22% gain in same-store sales.
An early Easter helped the results, the company said. Even so, Chief Executive Joel Waller said the numbers show Wet Seal’s revival efforts are taking hold.
“Our March comparable store sales result continues to validate our merchandise strategy,” he said.
