DALLAS – J.C. Penney Co. reported a 36 percent decline in second-quarter net income and said it also expects lower profits in the third quarter as back-to-school shoppers scale back spending.

Penney reported net income of $117 million, or 52 cents a share, in the period ended Aug. 2, compared with net income of $182 million, or 78 cents, a year ago.

Total sales fell 2.5 percent to $4.28 billion, and same-store sales declined 4.3 percent.

In the third quarter, Penney forecast earnings between 70 cents and 75 cents vs. $1.03 last year and the consensus estimate from analysts of 75 cents.

Comparable-store sales in the third quarter are expected to fall in the mid-single digits, Penney said.

Profits in the just completed quarter came from rigorous expense controls, good customer response to new brands and effective promotional pricing, said Myron “Mike” Ullman, chairman and chief executive officer.

“In this difficult consumer environment, we have continued to focus on tightly controlling all aspects of our business,” he said.

During the second quarter, Penney got its inventories below last year to match lower expectations and launched several new back-to-school brands such as Decree and Fabulosity in juniors and Dorm Life in home.

It opened 12 new stores and added 10 more Sephora shops inside J.C. Penney stores.