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Dillard's sales fall 2 pct. in February Friday, Mar 7, 2008 Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - Dillard's Inc. announced Thursday that both total sales and same-store sales fell 2 percent in February compared to the same month last year. Sales were $581.6 million for the four-week period that ended March 1, compared to $593.2 million in the four-week period that ended March 3, 2007, the company said. Shoe sales "significantly exceeded" average sales performance for the period, but sales in cosmetics and the home and other category were "significantly below trend," Dillard's said in a news release. Dillard's has been hounded by activist investor Barington Capital Group LP since June, when the group's CEO wrote the first of multiple letters to Dillard's CEO William Dillard II requesting meeting to discuss ways to improve the company, including better merchandising and management of its real estate portfolio. In a letter last week, Barington and the Clinton Group, which jointly own about 5.3 percent of Dillard's Class A common stock, demanded information, including stockholder addresses, to communicate with stockholders regarding the election of directors at the company's next annual meeting. The group has accused Dillard of ruining the business since taking over from his father in 1998. Since then, the company's market capitalization has fallen from $3.8 billion to $1.9 billion in August 2007, according to a from Barington Aug. 30. The company has suggested Dillard's needs to improve its management to increase shareholder value. Shares of Dillard's (NYSE: DDS) closed Thursday at $16.42, up 21 cents. |
