BJ’s Wholesale Third-Quarter Profits Rise

Natick, Mass., BJ’s Wholesale Club, Inc. reported higher-than-expected quarterly profits on Tuesday as its sales increased by 8%.

The warehouse club operator, which has been committed to improving lagging sales and customer traffic, said net income rose to $22.7 million for the quarter ended Nov. 3, up from $18.3 million a year ago.

Net sales rose 8% to $2.12 billion from $1.97 billion, and same-store sales increased 3.4%.

Some experts attributed the increases to a strategy spearheaded by CEO Herb Zarkin, who accepted the job in March after holding the position on an interim basis. He is cutting the number of items that BJ's offers and is stocking merchandise that either has better margins or sells faster.