Wednesday's Late Winners & Losers

Stocks generally slipped in extended trading Wednesday, but among the bigger earnings-propelled winners was Payless ShoeSource (PSS Quote).

Shares of the Topeka, Kan., discount-shoe retailer jumped 6.6% to $37 after income climbed 11.3% from last year to 59 cents a share, or $38.9 million, including special charges totaling 6 cents a share, in the quarter ended May 5. Revenue came in at $728.6 million.

In that same quarter, apparel retailer Chico's FAS (CHS Quote) topped the mean analyst estimate by 2 cents with continuing-operations income of 28 cents a share. The Fort Myers, Fla., company traded up 4.5% to $26.76 in recent after-hours action.

Software company Novell (NOVL Quote) of Waltham, Mass., meanwhile posted a non-GAAP profit that more than doubled year over year to a nickel a share, or $15.9 million, against analysts' penny-a-share estimates. Shares were recently 2.6% higher at $7.55.

On the flip side, Optium (OPTM Quote) plunged 10.1% to $14.11 on disappointing guidance. The Horsham, Pa., company, which makes optical subsystems for telecom and cable TV network systems, predicted far-lower-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter earnings of 8 cents to 11 cents a share (non-GAAP), compared with 17-cent Wall Street expectations. Fiscal third-quarter income also fell a penny short of consensus.