Finance & Capital Management

Dick’s Sporting Goods is expanding the responsibilities of its CFO.

The company says that in addition to serving as EVP/CFO, Andre J. Hawaux has been appointed as executive vice president, chief operating officer. In addition to his existing responsibilities for finance, legal and information technology, Hawaux will also oversee store operations, real estate and human resources.

Stanley Black & Decker and Newell Rubbermaid reported modest but steady growth in the fourth quarter, results that position both companies on solid ground going forward.

At Stanley Black and Decker, net sales for the fourth quarter came in at $2.98 billion, up from $2.88 billion in the fourth quarter of 2013. This was mainly due to increases in volume and price, but partially offset by currency. In terms of net income, the company pulled in $145.8 million, up considerably from last year's $56.1 million.

Target may not have been very successful in Canada, but the retailer has an altogether different strategy for the United States, where it will open 15 stores in 2015.

Target says it plans to open more small store formats than suburban big box stores this year.

The Minneapolis-based retailer will bring its smallest store, TargetExpress, which at 20,000 square feet is about a sixth of the size of its traditional big box stores, to two more metropolitan areas this year with one store slated for Chicago and two for the Washington, D.C., area.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. will have to get along without the advice of its controversial founder, who announced he is stepping down from the company's board.

Chip Wilson, a sometimes controversial figure who helped build the Canadian yogawear retailer into an international success story, said he was resigning from the company's board.

"I believe that now is the right time to step away," Wilson said in a statement.

Wilson, who founded Lululemon in 1998, withdrew from day-to-day management in early 2012, and stepped down as chairman in late 2013.

The TJX Companies announced that William H. Swanson has been elected to its board of directors.

New York -- Swedish fast-fashion giant Hennes & Mauritz AB (H&M) is in full expansion mode. Along with reporting a 17% increase in fiscal 2014 profits, the company said it plans to open 400 stores in 2015, with most of the openings in the United States and China. It will also enter several new markets, including India and South Africa.  

In other news, H&M is launching a new beauty concept, H&M Beauty, with an initial debut in about 900 stores and online, starting in fall 2015.

Issaquah, Wash. -- Costco Wholesale Corp. has declared a special one-time dividend of $5 per share that will result in approximately $2.2 billion being returned to shareholders.  

In its mostly recently reported quarter, Costco posted a 17% increase in profits, driven by lower gasoline prices and strong growth in store sales and membership fees.

San Jose, Calif. – Homeowners stuck shoveling out more than two feet of snow were not the only ones in the Northeast negatively impacted by winter storm Juno the week of Jan. 26. Analysis from RetailNext shows that between Monday, Jan. 26 and Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015, store traffic at Northeast retailers dropped 35.6% from the same three-day period the prior year.

New York -- Amazon reported higher-than-expected profit for its fourth quarter, fueled by growth of its Prime memberships and holiday shoppers, even as its sales came in below forecasts. It’s a reverse for the e-commerce giant, which has typically sacrificed profits for rapidly-growing sales.

For the fourth quarter, net income totaled $214 million, down from $239 million in the year-ago period, but better than analysts had expected. Sales rose 15% to $29.3 billion, lower than the expected $29.7 billion.

Boise, Idaho - Albertsons LLC and Safeway Inc. have completed their proposed merger, ending a nearly year-long process that began in March 2014. AB Acquisition LLC, the owner of Albertson's and New Albertson's, Inc., will acquire all outstanding shares of Safeway.

The merger will create a diversified network that includes 2,230 stores, 27 distribution facilities and 19 manufacturing plants with more than 250,000 employees across 34 states and the District of Columbia.