RICHMOND, Va., Dec 17 (Reuters) - Car retailer CarMax Inc. on Wednesday said its third-quarter net earnings fell due to costs of its recent spin-off from Circuit City Stores Inc. .
CarMax said it earned $14.7 million or 14 cents per share in the third quarter ended Nov. 30 versus $18.4 million or 18 cents per share in the previous third quarter.
Excluding the one-time fees, Richmond, Virginia-based CarMax earned 18 cents per share. Earlier this month, CarMax said that it expected to post earnings per share, before the separation fees, that were flat with the third quarter last year.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call had forecast earnings of 17 cents per share, excluding the separation fees.
CarMax said it expected fourth quarter earnings of between 18 cents per share and 20 cents per share, compared with a Thomson First Call estimate of 20 cents per share.