San Diego-based Handyman Corp. reported a 66%...

San Diego-based Handyman Corp. reported a 66% drop in earnings, to $1.1 million, and a 16% decrease in sales for the third quarter ended Sept. 28. For the nine months, net income rose 17% to $6.1 million and revenue decreased 20% to $174.3 million.

The sales decrease resulted from the closing of 21 Texas and Oklahoma stores last year, according to president and chief executive Harvey Rosen. The earnings, he said, were adversely affected by three factors: a $500,000 after-tax liquidation of inventory reserves last year compared to no change this year; an after-tax gain last year of $1.5 million on the sale of the Texas and Oklahoma stores, and higher-than-normal sales from the going-out-of-business sales in those stores.