Burlington Coat Factory 2Q sales up 3.3%

BURLINGTON, N.J. Burlington Coat Factory announced that net sales for the first quarter ended Sept. 1 were $678.8 million, compared with $656.8 million for the comparative period ended Sept. 2, 2006, a 3.3 % increase. According to the company, this increase is primarily the result of new stores opened during the past twelve months, partially offset by a 2% decrease in comparative-store sales.

The company recorded a net loss of $50.4 million for the three months ended Sept. 1 compared with a net loss of $51.8 million for the three months ended Sept. 2, 2006. Increased sales, reduced depreciation expense and lower interest expense contributed to the slight improvement over a year ago.