Saks 1st-qtr Loss Beats Forecast; TJX Posts Profit

Saks said it lost $5.1 million, or 4 cents per share, in the first quarter ended May 2. That compares with a profit of $17.3 million, or 12 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell 27 percent to $621.3 million, from $850 million a year earlier. Sales at stores open at least a year, known as same-store sales, dropped almost 28 percent. Same-store sales are considered a key indicator of a retailer's health.

Analysts expected a loss of 26 cents per share on revenue of nearly $620 million.

Diego Della Valle, founder of Italian luxury shoe and handbag maker Tod's SpA, became Saks' second-largest shareholder in recent weeks with a stake of nearly 6 percent, according to a filing last week with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim holds the largest stake in the company.

Chairman and Chief Executive Stephen I. Sadove told investors during a conference call Tuesday that he expects "the macroeconomic picture will remain extremely difficult for the balance of 2009, if not beyond, and we are continuing to plan accordingly."