J. C. Penney Co. Inc. said its normalized net income for the fiscal first quarter ended May 2 was a loss of 33 cents per share, compared with the S&P Capital IQ consensus estimate of a loss of 77 cents per share.

The per-share loss narrowed 52.0% year over year from 68 cents.

Normalized net income, which excludes unusual gains or losses on a pre- and after-tax basis, was a loss of $100.0 million, compared with a loss of $208.1 million in the year-earlier period.

The normalized profit margin rose to negative 2.9% from negative 7.4% in the year-earlier period.

Total revenue climbed on an annual basis to $2.86 billion from $2.80 billion, and total operating expenses decreased from the prior-year period to $2.94 billion from $3.04 billion.

Reported net income totaled a loss of $168.0 million, or a loss of 55 cents per share, compared to a loss of $350.8 million, or a loss of $1.15 per share, in the prior-year period.