Zumiez Boosts Q4 Outlook On Strong Holiday Sales

Zumiez Inc's ZUMZ boosted its fourth-quarter earnings estimate Wednesday by nearly 8 percent, citing higher-than-expected December sales.

The athletics apparel retailer said December same-store sales grew 8 percent while total sales for the period jumped 14.4 percent to $143.4 million.

Zumiez closed Wednesday at $40.28, up 4.7 percent.

The company forecast fourth-quarter net profits of between $0.75 and $0.77 a share, up nearly 8 percent from its earlier prediction of between $0.69 and $0.72 a share.

Zumiez predicted fourth-quarter sales of between $255 million and $256 million, on same-store sales growth of 7 percent.

Wall Street expects fourth-quarter earnings of $0.73 a share, on sales of $252.84 million.