Fred's (FRED) Comps Fell 0.6% in June

Fred's (NASDAQ: FRED) reported sales for the five-week month of June, which ended July 5, 2014.

Fred's total sales for the month increased 2% to $191.2 million from $187.3 million in June 2013. Comparable store sales for the month decreased 0.6% compared with a 4.5% increase in the same period last year.

Fred's total sales for the first five months of fiscal 2014 were $840.9 million, approximately flat compared with $841.1 million for the same period last year. On a comparable store basis, year-to-date sales decreased 1.3% versus flat sales for the year-earlier period.

Commenting on the announcement, Bruce A. Efird, Chief Executive Officer, said, "Comparable store sales declined slightly for June, with the fourth week of the month being unusually soft as we were unable to place our new ad program for that week. For the weeks that the new ad program were in effect, sales and customer traffic patterns improved noticeably. Our pharmacy department continued to experience strong growth in June, highlighted by ongoing increases in both comparable scripts and sales. Additionally, sales for EIRIS Health Services, our specialty pharmacy division, accelerated and exceeded plan.

"Looking forward, July will be the first month that all the elements of our new marketing plan come together, including in-store marketing initiatives that promote the diverse product mix offered by our stores, together with our new, fully implanted ad program," Efird continued. "We also will begin an aggressive clearance program in July to clear unproductive SKUs and exit or reduce product categories that do not align with our convenience center model. Our team is excited about these changes and confident we will continue to see a positive response from our customers to these initiatives."

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