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July 8 (Reuters) - Department-store operator Stage Stores Inc (SSI.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said it would meet or exceed the higher end of its second-quarter earnings forecast after posting a 1.2 percent rise in June same-store sales, sending its shares up as much as 14 percent. In May, the company had forecast earnings of 17 cents to 23 cents a share for the second quarter.

Analysts on average were expecting earnings of 18 cents a share, before special items, on revenue of $363.9 million, according to Reuters Estimates.

The company also said it expects to meet or exceed the high end of its second-quarter same-store sales forecast of a fall of 3 percent to 5 percent.

Stage Stores, which operates 716 stores in 35 states, said sales at stores open at least a year rose 1.2 percent for the five-week period ended July 5.

Three analysts on average expected a drop in same-store sales of 1 percent, according to Thomson Reuters Estimates.

The company, which expects to open five new stores in July, said higher sales across a broad range of categories, including children's, cosmetics, dresses, footwear, intimate apparel, men's, misses' sportswear and petites drove same-store sales.

Same-stores sales rose in all regions except the Southwest, where sales were down slightly, the company said.

Total sales rose 6.4 percent to $142.0 million.

Shares of the Houston-based company rose to a high of $13.43 before paring some gains to trade up $1.32 at $13.14 in morning trade on the New York Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Anne Pallivathuckal in Bangalore; Editing by Pratish Narayanan, Deepak Kannan)