Q4, Full Year Sales Up at Delia’s

Sales for New York-based teen apparel and gear merchant Delia’s (Nasdaq: DLIA) rose 11% for the fourth quarter and 14 for the year ended Jan. 28.

Fourth-quarter sales reached $78.4 million, up from $70.6 million the previous year. Sales for fiscal 2005 were $226.7 million, compared with $199.4 million for 2004. In addition to the eponymous catalog and retail chain, Delia’s includes apparel catalog Alloy and skateboarding catalog CCS.

Fourth-quarter sales for the direct segment increased 9%, to $57.8 million, on a 10.5% rise in catalog circulation. Fourth-quarter sales in the retail segment increased 16%, to $20.6 million, primarily due to new stores. Fourth-quarter net income increased 34%, to $4.7 million from $3.5 million a year ago.

Full-year sales from the company’s direct segment increased 17%, to $158 million, driven by a 5% catalog circulation increase and an increase in demand per book. Full-year retail sales increased 7%, to $68.7 million. The company posted a net loss of $10.3 million, compared with a loss of $9.4 million for 2004. The 2005 figures reflect a loss from discontinued operations of $11.3 million from the sale of the Dan’s Competition business.