Payless owner considering sale of company

Collective Brands Inc. says it will close 475 stores and look to sell the company after posting a big second-quarter loss.
 
The Topeka, Kansas-based parent of Payless ShoeSource and Stride Rite Children’s shoes says it is conducting “a review of strategic and financial alternatives,” typical language for companies looking to put themselves up for sale.
 
In the meantime it will close about 475 underperforming stores, including 75 Stride Rite locations. More than 300 will be shuttered by the end of the year.
 
Collective Brands says it lost $35 million, or 58 cents per share, for the three months ended July 30. That included a series of impairment and severance charges that cut income by $83.6 million. 
 
Shares soared $3.22, or 31.3 percent, to $13.50 in aftermarket trading.