CORRECT: Office Depot Matches Profit Expectations, Comes Up a Bit Short On Sales

Office Depot reported on Tuesday third-quarter earnings that fell to $6 million, or 1 cent a share, from $29 million, or 5 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, such as costs related to the OfficeMax merger and pending acquisition of Staples, the office supply retailer said adjusted earnings per share came to 16 cents, matching the FactSet consensus. Sales fell to $3.69 billion from $4.07 billion, just shy of the FactSet consensus of $3.72 billion, as slightly better-than-expected North American retail sales were offset by weakness in international sales. The company said it still expects full-year 2015 sales "to be lower" than 2014. It increased the number of expected 2015 store closures to 180 from 175, but lowered its outlook for 2016 store closures to "more than 50" from "at least 60." The stock, which fell 2.8% in premarket trade, has dropped 13% year to date through Monday, while the S&P 500 has tacked on 2.2%. (This replaces an earlier item that incorrectly identified the company reporting results)