Zumiez, Yahoo: After-Hours Trading

Shares of Zumiez(ZUMZ) zoomed higher in late trades Wednesday after the sports apparel retailer boosted its quarterly earnings outlook and reported strong same-store sales growth of 10.1% for September.

The stock was last quoted at $21.30, up 13.4%, on after-hours volume of nearly 80,000, according to Nasdaq.com. The shares gained 6% to $18.79 in the regular session.

After the close, Everett, Wash.-based Zumiez said it now expects earnings of 40 to 41 cents a share in its fiscal third quarter ending this month on sales of $150 million to $152 million. The company's prior forecast was for a profit of 37 to 39 cents a share in the October period. The current average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is for earnings of 39 cents a share on revenue of $149.3 million.

Zumiez said its outlook is based on expectations for same-store sales increasing in the mid-single digits for the third quarter.

For the five weeks ended Oct. 1, the company's total sales rose 18.3% to $52.9 million from $44.7 million.

Wall Street is split on Zumiez with 10 of the 20 analysts covering the stock rating it as a hold, and the median 12-month price target sitting at $22, offering little upside from current levels.

Yahoo

Shares of Yahoo(YHOO) weakened after Wednesday's closing bell, giving back some of its 10%-plus gain in the regular session following a Reuters report that Microsoft(MSFT) was mulling an acquisition bid.

The report has since been shot down by other outlets, however, and it's already been well known that Yahoo plans to explore its strategic options since Carol Bartz was dropped as CEO early in September.

Yahoo shares were last quoted at $15.38, down 3.5%, on volume of 3.7 million, while Microsoft's stock ticked up a dime in late trades to $26.01 on volum! e of 1.4 million, according to Nasdaq.com.

Also moving in the extended session was Bank of America(BAC), which continued to experience problems with its Web site for a fifth day on Wednesday. After tacking on a penny in regular trading, the stock lost 13 cents, or 2.3%, to $5.64 after the close on volume of 2.4 million.

And finally, disappointing quarterly reports were weighing on shares of Christopher & Banks(CBK) and Ruby Tuesday(RT) after the close.

Christopher & Banks' shares lost more than 10% after the Minneapolis women's apparel retailer missed on the top line in its fiscal second quarter and said it expects margins to take a hit in the second half as it becomes "highly promotional" in order to move merchandise.

Ruby Tuesday's stock fell almost 8% on volume of nearly 300,000 after the restaurant operator posted an in-line profit but fell short on revenue, citing heavy competition because of softness in the economy.

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