Stride Rite’s second quarter profit rises on new shoe styles

LEXINGTON (Bloomberg) — Stride Rite Corp., the maker of Keds and its namesake
brand of children’s shoes, said fiscal second-quarter profit rose 5.7 percent
as it sold more shoes at full price. Profit from operations rose to $11.2 million,
or 27 cents a share, from net income of $10.6 million, or 24 cents, a year ago,
the company said in a statement. Sales in the quarter ended June 1 fell 1.8 percent
to $153.7 million, led by an 11 percent drop in Keds sales.