Specialty clothes retailer Express Inc (NYSE: PR) saw shares plunge over 17% in pre-market as it continues to struggle to attract shoppers.

Reporting third quarter results, the group said it now expects adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of between 78 and 82 cents.

That was down from previous guidance of between US$1 and US$1.14 a share.

Profits for the three months were US$11.6 million, against US$26.3 million in the same time in 2015, on revenues, which dropped 7.4% to $506.1mln.

Express president and chief executive David Kornberg said the quarter had been highlighted by sales and earnings in line with the group's guidance and progress made addressing the areas noted for improvement.

"This progress included refocusing our brand projection and marketing to be more consistent with our core demographic and additional steps taken to drive customer acquisition and retention.

"Notably, while small traffic challenges continued to impact our store performance, we achieved a double digit increase in e-commerce sales."

Notably, the group did report an increase in e-commerce sales by 15% to US$96.3 million.

As at the end of the period, the group had cash and cash equivalents of US$101.9mln against US$91.2mln as at the end of the third quarter of 2015.

Shares ahead of the Wall Street open plunged  17.74% to stand at US$10.99 each.