Foot Locker on the Block

Foot Locker (FL Quote) put itself on the block after its latest lackluster sales performance.

The New York-based sneaker retailer said it expects to lose 17 to 20 cents a share for the second quarter, as same-store sales will drop 7%-8% from a year earlier. The company said it expects to take 22 cents a share worth of charges to liquidate slow-moving inventory.

Foot Locker had earlier forecast a profit of 15 to 20 cents a share for the quarter.

The company also doubled its 2007 store-closings target to 250, saying that as a result, "the profitability of the company's U.S. store base will be enhanced, beginning in 2008."

Foot Locker also said it hired Lehman Brothers "to evaluate strategic alternatives, including inquiries received from private-equity firms." Foot Locker earlier this year failed in repeated efforts to buy Genesco (GCO Quote), which later agreed to a deal with Finish Line (FINL Quote).

Foot Locker rose 39 cents to $19.44.