Kohl's reports strong April sales, raises outlook

MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis. Kohl’s reported that sales for the four-week period ended May 3, increased 12% to $1.3 billion from $1.1 billion last year. On a comparable-store basis, sales increased 3.5%.

Larry Montgomery, Kohl’s chairman and ceo, commented, “We were encouraged by the improvement in our sales performance in April as business in seasonal categories improved. We will be conservative in our inventory planning and expense management as we continue to expect our customers to be cautious in their spending.” 

As a result of April’s performance, the company now expects earnings to exceed its previous guidance of 40 cents to 42 cents per diluted share.