business

Burger King Holdings Inc. said its fiscal fourth-quarter profit rose, even though revenue fell for the first time since the company became public in 2006 because diners visited the fast-food chain less often and spent less when they did. Despite the 2.4 percent decline in revenue for April through June, the nation's No. 2 burger chain still managed to top Wall Street profit estimates, thanks to its cost-cutting efforts in the United States, the Miami-based company said Tuesday. That sent shares up more than 10 percent before falling back later in the session. For the three months ended June 30, Burger King earned $58.9 million, or 43 cents per share. That compares with a profit of $50.6 million, or 37 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier. Revenue dipped to $629.9 million, down from $645.7 million.

Borders Group Inc. reported Tuesday that it continued to lose money in its fiscal second quarter on charges and declining sales at its bookstores. The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based company recorded a loss of $45.6 million, or 76 cents per basic share, for the period ended Aug. 1. That compares with a loss of $9.2 million, or 15 cents per basic share, in the same period a year ago. Quarterly results included non-operating charges of $32.9 million, or 55 cents per basic share. Excluding the mainly non-cash charges, the company's loss was 21 cents per share in the latest quarter. Borders, which is one of the nation's largest booksellers, has been trying to turn around its business for some time after losing much of its market share to online and discount booksellers. But the recession has compounded its problems as consumers cut back on discretionary items like books, music and other items in its stores.

The Columbus, Ohio-based discount retailer reported a profit of 34 cents per share and earnings from continuing operations of 35 cents per share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, whose estimates normally exclude one-time items, forecast net income of 30 cents per share. The quarterly performance also surpassed the 32 cents-per-share estimate of Raymond James analyst Dan Wewer. "Big Lots offset the pressure from an increased sales contribution from consumables via improvements in initial markups and lower freight costs," he wrote in a client note.

The office supply chain's sales fell less in the second quarter than earlier this year, but the company said Tuesday that its profit dropped 39 percent, mainly because of its acquisition of Dutch chain Corporate Express. Sales at Staples stores open at least a year, a key industry metric known as same-store sales, fell 5 percent in the second quarter as average order size fell. Overall, the Framingham, Mass.-based chain's sales rose 9 percent to $5.53 billion from $5.07 billion.

ASSOCIATED PRESS