"September sales benefited from weak sales in the comparable period last year, which included the impact of hurricanes in the gulf coast states," said John Cato, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer. "With quarter-to-date sales and margin higher than expected, we now estimate third quarter earnings per diluted share will be in the range of $.03 to $.05 versus our previous guidance of ($.07) to ($.03) and $.03 last year."

During the month of September, the Charlotte-based discount women's apparel retailer opened five new stores and closed four It's Fashion stores to convert them to It's Fashion Metro stores. New stores opened in Kinston and Wilson. Elsewhere, the new stores were are in Lake City and Sumter, SC, and Dallas, TX. The Cato Corporation operates 1,290 stores in 31 states.