Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.’s new chief executive officer went to a well established play for new corporate leaders: Get the bad news out of the way right away and set expectations low.

The shares plunged 7 per cent in late trading Wednesday after the U.S. retailer withdrew its financial guidance following another quarter of declining sales. CEO Mark Tritton, whose recent hiring from retail stalwart Target Corp. was celebrated by investors, said that the “unsatisfactory” performance at Bed Bath & Beyond “underscores the imperative for change.” On a conference call with analysts, the CEO said he’ll be back in the spring with a turnaround plan.

Same-store sales, a key measure for retailers, fell 8.3 per cent in the fiscal third quarter that ended early December, the 11th consecutive decline. That was a deeper slide than the 4.9 per cent drop anticipated by analysts, according to Consensus Metrix.

Profit and sales will remain under pressure in the current quarter, Bed Bath & Beyond said in a statement. In pulling the full-year outlook, Tritton is clearing the deck as he crafts plans to reverse the retailer’s lengthy sales slump. The company has struggled to draw shoppers amid a barrage of competition from online retailers, discounters and big-box stores.

On the call, Tritton said the retailer had troubles with inventories, uncompetitive prices and a lack of convenience for digital-savvy shoppers.

Employees still have a favorable impression of the brand, he added. This “demonstrates that Bed Bath & Beyond is still a well-loved, well-known brand with tremendous opportunity to grow share within a US$51 billion U.S. market for the home-related categories.”

The stock plunged as much as 25 per cent before paring much of the loss after the conference call started. The shares gained more than 50 per cent last year -- almost double the advance of the S&P 500 Index. Gains accelerated in October after the company announced Tritton would take over as CEO.