“Today we reported a solid quarter, as expected, with improved sales, margins and adjusted earnings”, stated Diane Sullivan, CEO, President and Chairman of Caleres, adding: “Total sales were up 2%, excluding Shoes.com, while gross and operating margin both expanded in the quarter. We also improved bottom-line performance by 22%, thanks to continued progress toward our long-term strategic initiatives.”

During the second quarter of 2015 Caleres reached net sales of 637.8 million US dollars versus second quarter 2014 net sales of 635.9 million US dollars. Net earnings reached 16.8 million US dollars, or 0.38 US dollars per diluted share, and included 5.3 million US dollars of after-tax expense related to the company’s debt extinguishment. Excluding this expense, net earnings totaled 22.1 million US dollars, or 0.50 US dollars per diluted share, up 22.4% versus second quarter 2014 net earnings of 18.1 million US dollars, or 0.41 US dollars per diluted share. Gross margin was 41.2%, up approximately 40 basis points year-over-year, while operating margin was 5.6%.

Famous Footwear second quarter 2015 sales of 395.9 million US dollars were up by 0.6% year-over-year, excluding Shoes.com, which was sold in December of 2014. For the quarter, same-store-sales were up by 0.1%, with strong growth in canvas outweighing weakness in performance athletic product and sandals. During the quarter, 10 new stores were opened and six stores were closed.

Brand Portfolio sales of 242.0 million US dollars increased by 4.4% in the second quarter, with performance in the quarter driven by a 14.1% improvement in Contemporary Fashion. Healthy Living sales were down by 1.5%, as increases in wholesale sales were unable to offset weakness on the retail side, where the company operated nine fewer stores year-over-year.

Consolidated gross profit of 262.8 million US dollars was up by 1.2% in the second quarter, while gross margin of 41.2% was up approximately 40 basis points year-over-year.

“In the second quarter, we made steady progress toward achieving our full year earnings guidance, as we continued to drive margin expansion and further strengthened our balance sheet,” stated Ken Hannah, Chief Financial Officer of Caleres, adding: “This progress has enabled us to accelerate investment in our long-term strategic growth initiatives.”