Staples Is Getting Creamed

The plight of brick and mortar retailers continues.

Office supply retail chain Staples announced Q2 financial results that were weaker than expected.

Earnings from continuing operations came in at $0.16 per share, missing expectations for $0.18.

The company's sales fell 2% to $5.3 billion. Comparable store sales excluding Staples.com fell 3%.

"We drove online sales growth and aggressively managed expenses during the second quarter, but this progress was offset by weakness in our retail stores and international businesses," said CEO Ron Sargent.

Management also cut guidance.

"The company’s second quarter results were weaker than expected, and as a result the company is adjusting its sales and earnings outlook," they said. "The company expects full year 2013 sales to decrease in the low single-digits compared to 2012 sales on a 52 week basis of $23.9 billion. The company expects full year 2013 diluted earnings per share from continuing operations to be in the range of $1.21 to $1.25."

Shares are down 8% in pre-market trading. Here's the chart via MarketWatch.