"On September 22, we updated our outlook for the third quarter, and today we reported results in line with that update," Norman Axelrod, the company's chairman and CEO said at yesterday's earnings webcast. "We are obviously disappointed with our third-quarter performance.

"We experienced significant traffic declines throughout the quarter, as the initiatives we had undertaken to emphasize fashion and better price points in our merchandise assortment resulted in weaker value perception," Axelrod told analysts yesterday. "Looking at the rest of the year, we believe we have taken appropriate steps to ensure that our value message is clear and consistent in our stores and in our marketing.

"The launch of the Nate Berkus Collection has been well-received," Axelrod told analysts. "We are excited about the fresh appeal this brand, offered exclusively at Linens 'n Things, has and the potential it brings to drive traffic to our stores."

Axelrod and company president Jack Moore declined to open the webcast to analysts' questions, but did touch on reports that his company might be putting itself on the block. Indeed, Linens 'n Things has hired Credit Suisse First Boston as its financial advisor to sort things out. Axlerod did say that the company's board "is exploring the strategic alternatives," but that he would not report anything further until the body "approves a definitive transaction" as to the company's fate.

Axelrod also declined to provide Q4 guidance "at this time," citing "the variability of the results."

For the three quarters ended October 1, 2005, Linens 'n Things also reported net sales off by less than 1% to $1,773.5 million, from $1,785.7 million. Comparable store sales were off by 7.7%. The net loss for the period was $9 million, or 20 cents a share on a fully diluted basis, from the previous year's earnings of $16.2 million, or 35 cents per share.

The company also reported yesterday that it had opened 14 new stores and closed three during Q3, increasing its total in-store space to 17.6 million sf. When all the numbers are in, Linens 'n Things expects to have opened a total of 55 new stores in the US and Canada during the current fiscal year.