A.C. Moore 3Q comps, earnings down

BERLIN, N.J. A.C. Moore Arts & Crafts announced that sales for the third quarter of 2008 were $116.7 million, a decrease of 4.9% versus sales of $122.6 million during the third quarter of 2007.

Same-store sales decreased by 9.4% versus the same period in 2007. The net loss for the third quarter of 2008 was $7.5 million, or 37 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $0.6 million, or 3 cents per share, in the third quarter of 2007.

Rick Lepley, ceo, stated, “It is obvious that we continue to operate in a very challenging macro environment, one in which any meaningful improvement in specialty retailing will have to be directly tied to increases in discretionary spending on the part of American consumers.”