Finance & Capital Management

Lowe's outlined its progress in meeting its sustainability objectives in its 2014 Social Responsibility Report.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. – In its latest move to capitalize on the value of its real estate and raise more cash, Sears Holdings Corp. has formed a joint venture with Simon Property Group whereby Simon will take ownership of 10 Sears stores in Simon malls and lease them back to Sears, who will continue operating Sears stores in the venture. The stores include properties Sears has leased to other entities.

Bentonville, Ark. – Walton Enterprises LLC, the corporation which holds Wal-Mart stock for the Walton family, plans to sell off some of its ownership stake in the discount giant. In a brief statement on the Wal-Mart investors webpage, Walton Enterprises said its stake in Wal-Mart has risen to about 50% as a result of stock buyback programs.

The National Retail Federation is investing millions of dollars into research for the retail industry by creating a new center.

NRF plans to form a new department called the Retail Research and Analysis Center to bring together all existing research within NRF and expand upon the wide range of issue areas and trends already studied. The center will focus on four main areas: the economy, legislative and regulatory policy, the retail industry and consumers.

New York -- General Electric Company on Friday announced it will sell or spin off the majority of its $500 billion GE Capital finance business over the next two years as it looks to simplify and concentrate on its industrial roots. The company said it will keep its aircraft leasing operation and smaller lending lines.

GE said it has sold its real-estate assets, which include commercial loans and office buildings, for $26.5 billion, with  Wells Fargo & Co. and private equity firm Blackstone Group buying the bulk of it.

Petco has filled two key executive roles as it continues to build a team to successfully execute key strategic initiatives.

The company has named Michael M. Nuzzo as EVP and chief financial officer and Michael W. Zuna as SVP and chief marketing and digital officer.

San Francisco – Strong same-store sales growth at Old Navy helped drive a 1% increase in net sales at Gap Inc. to $1.53 billion in March 2015, compared with net sales of $1.51 billion for the same month the previous year.

Gap Inc.’s overall same-store sales were up 2%. The company said that the earlier timing of the Easter holiday peak shopping weeks in 2015 benefited March sales results and will likely negatively impact its April sales results.

L Brands continued to be a bright spot in specialty retail in March, reporting a 9% increase in same-store sales.

The company said an earlier Easter and the spring break season helped its March sales increase 6% from the year before. L Brands is the owner of Victoria’s Secret, Bath & Body Works and its own eponymous brand. The company reported brisk sales at Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works in March.