The following is a general roundup of US apparel and shoe retailers' September 2012 sales results.

Action sportswear and footwear retailer Zumiez recorded an 18.6% increase in total sales to reach $62.7m, up from $52.9m the prior year. Comparable store sales were up 5.6%, according to the company, which operates 489 stores.

US teen fashion retailer The Buckle posted a 0.8% rise in net sales for the five weeks ended 29 September to $99.1m, up from $98.4m the same period last year. The company, which owns 440 retail stores, said comparable store sales for stores open at least one year edged down 0.8%.

Meanwhile, at The Wet Seal, sales at stores open at least one year fell 12.7%. Comparable store sales declined 12.6% at Wet Seal stores and dropped 13.6% at Arden B stores. The teen retailer, which saw total sales slip 9.9% to $48.3m, said results were "in line with expectations".

Limited Brands, which owns the Victoria's Secret chain, said its September comparable store sales increased 5% for the five weeks ended 29 September. Net sales slipped 5.5% to $773.6m, down from $818.6m the prior year.

Specialty clothing retailer Gap Inc booked a 6% rise in comparable sales during September on the back of gains at its North American divisions. The San Francisco-based retailer saw comparable sales growth in all of its North American business units, with Gap recording a 5% gain, Banana Republic posting 4% growth and Old Navy booking a 10% increase in comparable store sales. But international comparable store sales declined 3%, against a 13% fall last year. Net sales increased 8% to US$1.45bn, compared to $1.35bn the same period last year.

Total sales at upscale department store operator Nordstrom rose 7.4% to $1.01bn, compared to $943m the same period last year. Same-store sales were up 4.4%. The retailer opened four Nordstrom Rack stores during the month and announced plans to open four full-line store in Canada starting 2014.

Department store chain Kohl's saw September total sales edge down 1.4%, while comparable store sales slipped 2.7%. The retailer, which operates 1,146 stores, said it remains comfortable with its previous third-quarter guidance of $0.83 to $0.89 per diluted share.

For Macy's, September saw total sales increase 2.7% to $2.36bn, up from $2.29bn last year. On a same-store basis, sales were up 2.5%. The company said sales were "consistent" with its year-to-date trend.

Department store operator The Bon-Ton Stores posted a 0.7% rise in total sales to $288.9m, up from $286.9m the year before. Comparable store sales edged up 0.6% because of a better balanced merchandise assortment and refined marketing efforts. The retailer said it "gained momentum" in the final two weeks and "finished strong".

Discount department store retailer Stage Stores reported a 13.7% increase in total sales to $134m, up from $118m the year before. Comparable store sales were up 11.1% with every merchandise category achieving an increase. The company described September as "an outstanding month" with strong back-to-school sales.

Over at Ross Stores there was a 10% jump in sales for the five weeks ended 29 September, to $800m, up from $726m the year before. Comparable store sales increased 5%. The value retailer has lifted its third-quarter earnings per share target to between $.70 to $.71, compared to earlier guidance of $0.63 to $0.66.

At discount retailer Stein Mart, comparable store sales increased 2.4% during September. Total sales were up 3.9% to $102.7m, compared to $98.9m in the prior year. The company, which has 262 stores, said sales were impacted by hurricane Isaac as a number of stores were not operational for a period of time.

Off-price retailer The TJX Companies Inc booked a 10% rise in sales during the five-week period to $2.5bn, up from $2.2bn the prior year. The company was "extremely pleased" with its better-than-expected comparable store sales increase of 6%.

At value-priced fashion retailer The Cato Corp, which operates the Cato, Versona and It's Fashion divisions, sales climbed 1% to $71.1, against $70.7m a year ago. The company said same-store sales fell 4%, which reflected a minimal negative impact from Hurricane Issac and were "mostly in line" with its year-to-date trend.

And Target Corporation saw net sales climb 2.6% to $6.07bn, up from $5.92bn last year. September comparable-store sales rose 2.1%, which was "in line" with the company's guidance. The retailer said it was "pleased" with its sales results.