Financial reports: Staples, Williams-Sonoma, Jos. A. Bank

Staples 3Q profits up 40%

Office products cataloger/retailer Staples (NasdaqNM:SPLS) posted net income of $128 million for the three months ended Nov. 2. That’s a 40% improvement from $91.3 million for the third quarter of last year. Sales for the quarter were $3.1 billion, up 9% from $2.8 billion last year.

Staples’ North American Delivery business, which includes the Quill catalog and its Websites, enjoyed a 17% increase in sales, to $910.6 million from $777.6 million last year. North American retail stores increased 3%, to $1.9 billion.

Looking ahead, Framingham, MA-based Staples expects fourth-quarter earnings in line with Wall Street analysts and sees higher-than-expected growth next year as it focus on small-business customers and improving its stores.

Net earnings skyrocket at Williams-Sonoma Cataloger/retailer Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM), whose titles include Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Hold Everything, Chambers, and West Elm, has plenty to brag about. Its third-quarter net earnings jumped 287% while net revenue, including shipping fees, increase 14%. And those impressive figures come despite a decline in sales from its Hold Everything brand. In a statement, the San Francisco-based company also said that introductory customer discounts on its new Pottery Barn private-label credit card took away somewhat from its profits.

For the three months ended Nov. 3, Williams-Sonoma netted $15.1 million on revenue of $527.9 million. For the comparable period of last year, income was $3.9 million on revenue of $462.1 million.

Catalog and Internet sales increased 7%, to $187.7 million from $176.2 million last year. The company attributes the increase to growth in the Pottery Barn, Williams-Sonoma, and Pottery Barn Kids brands and incremental sales from the West Elm catalog, which launched in the first quarter of this year. Comparable store sales increased 3% in the third quarter.

Record net income forJos. A. Bank The bottom line soared at men’s apparel cataloger/retailer Jos. A. Bank (Nasdaq: JOSB). For the three months ended Nov. 2, the Hampstead, MD-based marketer posted record net income of $1.9 million, up 42% from $1.3 million a year earlier. Third-quarter sales increased 15%, to $57.9 million from $50.2 million last year. Combined catalog and Internet sales rose 14%. Comparable store sales increased 8%.