Zale 3rd-quarter same-store sales climb 5.8 percent

Zale Corp. said Thursday its third-quarter same-store sales rose 5.8 percent, helped by clearance sales.

Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, is a key indicator of retailer performance since it measures growth at existing stores rather than newly opened ones.

The specialty jeweler said revenue for the quarter ended April 30 gained 6.3 percent to $477 million from $449 million.

Results from Bailey Banks & Biddle stores, which were sold in November, were not included.

For the year to date, same-store sales fell 2.3 percent and total revenue slipped 2.4 percent to $1.68 billion.

Zale will report third-quarter financial results on May 22. The company runs 2,200 retail locations in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.