Charlotte Russe falls on earnings miss, downgrade

Also, an analyst downgraded the stock.

Shares fell $3.43, or 20.3 percent, to close at $13.46. The stock has traded between $12.27 and $24.21 during the last 52 weeks.

The San Diego company said its Chief Executive Mark Hoffman, 59, would retire and be replaced on an interim basis by board member Leonard Mogil, 62. Charlotte Russe is searching for a permanent successor.

Meanwhile, it said third-quarter profit totaled 31 cents per share, while analysts polled by Thomson Financial, on average, expected a profit of 32 cents per share. Sales in stores open at least one year, a key retail metric known as same-store sales, fell 6.5 percent during the quarter. Revenue rose 7 percent but fell short of analyst expectations.

Retailers, particularly women's apparel retailers, are facing a difficult environment as consumers cut back amid high food and gas prices and declining home values.

Friedman, Billings, Ramsey analyst Adrienne Tennant wrote in a note to investors that she expects negative same-store sales trends to continue for the next several quarters.

The company also has high exposure to California and Florida markets--which have been hit hardest by the housing slump. The states make up about 24 percent of the company's store base, according to Tennant.

"Regarding the announcement of chief executive Mark Hoffman's departure, while we believe that management change can often be a catalyst for shares, we believe that the search will take some time and that business will continue to be sluggish," Tennant wrote.

She downgraded the stock to "Market Perform" from "Outperform."