For the quarter ending Feb. 3, earnings declined to $5.9million, or 32 cents per share, down from $6.7 million, or 38 centsper share, a year earlier, breaking the company's string of 18quarters of consecutive growth.

Company officials called the drop "a bump in the road" and saidthe firm's business fundamentals "remain strong" but Wall Streetreacted sharply to the news, sending stocks plummeting 33%.

Jos. A. Banks chief financial officer David Ullman called theearnings decline "an aberration in our growth period," saying thedrop was due largely to increased customer demand for fallmerchandise which resulted in less demand for the firm's line ofyear-round clothing."Looking back with 20-20 hindsight, we think weprobably were a little too price aggressive on some of the fallgoods," R. Neal Black, the company's chief merchandising officersaid.