By Anne Steele

Gap Inc. reported same-store sales rose during the holiday season, reversing a string of declines, amid improvement at its namesake and Old Navy clothing lines, and boosted its earnings guidance for the year.

Comparable sales for the November and December period climbed 2% from a year earlier.

Gap's shares, which have tumbled 12% over the past 12 months through Thursday's close, added back 9.7% after hours to $25.50.

"We're pleased with the improved momentum we saw over the holiday season, driven primarily by a positive customer response at Gap and Old Navy," said Chief Financial Officer Sabrina Simmons.

She said the company now expects full-year adjusted earnings per share to come in modestly above the high end of the previous guidance range of $1.92.

For the December month, the company's comparable sales increased 4% versus a 5% decrease in the year-earlier period. Same-store sales at its Gap and Old Navy brands rose 1% and 12%, respectively, and fell 7% at Banana Republic.

Overall revenue for the five-week period ended Dec. 31 rose 3% to $2.07 billion.

Write to Anne Steele at Anne.Steele@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 05, 2017 17:28 ET (22:28 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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