Jones Apparel Group Inc., a designer and retailer of clothes, shoes and accessories, on Tuesday said quarterly earnings fell, hurt by its exit from a lucrative licensing deal with Ralph Lauren Corp.

Even so, the results surpassed both Wall Street''s and the company''s forecasts as sales rebounded slightly toward the latter part of the fiscal third-quarter ended Oct. 4.

Shares of Jones rose $1.78, or 5.5 percent, to $34.08 in morning New York Stock Exchange trading.

Bristol, Pennsylvania-based Jones Apparel, whose numerous brands include Jones New York and Nine West, said quarterly earnings were $93.9 million, or 71 cents per share. That compared with $129.8 million, or 95 cents per share, a year earlier.

Analysts'' estimates had averaged 68 cents, according to Reuters Research, a unit of Reuters Group Plc.

Third-quarter revenue was $1.18 billion, down from $1.28 billion a year earlier.