House Of Fabrics Inc

House of Fabrics Inc., a Sherman Oaks-based fabric retailer that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last Wednesday, said the bankruptcy court has approved its use of cash flow from company operations to purchase merchandise and fund ongoing operations through the end of the month. The company said the decision allows it to begin receiving shipments of standard items for its stores and to renew stock that has been in short supply in recent months.

House of Fabrics Inc. said it plans to buy up to an additional 1 million shares, or 7.4%, of its total common stock outstanding. The Sherman Oaks-based operator of the nation's largest fabric store chain said it would repurchase the stock periodically on the open market or through private trades. House of Fabrics has 13.6 million shares outstanding. The repurchase would cost about $21 million based on the stock's closing price Monday of $20.

House of Fabrics Inc., a Sherman Oaks chain of retail fabric stores, reported a $693,000 loss for its fiscal first quarter ended April 30. A year before, the company earned $2.65 million. Its revenue in the latest quarter was $128 million, up slightly from the $126.3 million in revenue the previous year. House of Fabrics blamed the loss on the weak economy, particularly in California where many of its stores are.

House of Fabrics Inc., which was scheduled to hold its annual shareholders meeting today, postponed the meeting to July 16. At the meeting, House of Fabrics shareholders of record June 6 will be asked to vote on House of Fabrics' previously announced purchase of Fabricland Inc. in exchange for House of Fabrics stock valued at about $55 million. Both House of Fabrics, based in Sherman Oaks, and Fabricland, a Portland, Ore.-based concern, operate chains of retail fabric stores.

House of Fabrics Inc., a Sherman Oaks chain of retail fabric stores, said it will reduce the number of shares it plans to issue as part of its proposed reorganization under Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. The company had planned to ask the court to allow the issue of 13.7 million shares on the effective date of the reorganization, but has modified that request to 5.1 million shares, the company said.

House of Fabrics Inc., a Sherman Oaks fabric retailer that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November, has filed a reorganization plan with the federal Bankruptcy Court that would allow the company to continue operating and purchasing inventory. However, the company said the plan is likely to undergo some revisions because of continuing negotiations with its creditors and stockholders.

House of Fabrics Inc., a Sherman Oaks-based chain of fabric stores, said its fiscal fourth-quarter profit fell sharply from a year earlier, partly because of $1 million in expenses due to the Northridge earthquake. For the quarter ended Jan. 31, the company earned $212,000, down from $2.21 million in the same period a year earlier. Revenue in the latest quarter declined 6%, to $147.6 million from $157.7 million a year earlier. The company's operating profit in the latest quarter was $4.

House of Fabrics Inc., citing its need for heavy markdowns to keep pace in the "highly competitive retail fabrics industry," said its fiscal third-quarter profit plunged 88% from a year earlier and predicted that its fourth-quarter profit also would trail year-earlier results. In the quarter ended Oct. 31, House of Fabrics' net income fell to $758,000 from $6.42 million a year earlier.