Deep discounts put retail profits in hole

ALL THOSE big bargains stores offered to lure holiday shoppers came at a cost.

A batch of big retailers cut their profit forecasts — some despite bigger holiday sales.

Signet Jewelers, owner of the Kay Jewelers brand, posted a 5% gain in NovemberDecember sales, but said “additional discounting was necessary” and warned of a weaker quarterly profit.

Victoria’s Secret’s parent company L Brands also cut its holiday quarter earnings forecast after reporting an unexpectedly small December sales gain of 2%. Family Dollar Stores and teen retailer Zumiez slashed their forecasts after reporting December sales declines. American Eagle, whose same-store sales for the NovemberDecember period fell 7%, said its profit would land at the bottom of its estimated range. Bed Bath & Beyond slashed its full-year forecast, sending its shares down 12%.

One outlier was Costco, which said its same-store sales rose 3% in December.