Finance & Capital Management

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores posted disappointing results for its first quarter, with earnings down 5% as harsh winter weather kept shoppers away. The company also gave a weak earnings forecast for its current quarter that fell short of analysts' estimates.

For the period ended April 30, Wal-Mart earned $3.59 billion, compared with $3.78 billion a year ago, less than analysts expected. In addition to the unusually harsh winter weather, a higher-than-expected tax rate also hurt earnings, the retailer said.

Walmart continues to envision flat same store sales at its U.S. stores after reporting weaker than expected profits on weak U.S. sales results that were negatively affected by a winter that wouldn’t end.

Kohl’s joins a growing list of retailers whose first-quarter results took a hit from a severe and extended winter. Despite missing estimates, the company is staying firm on its guidance for the full fiscal year.

Things took a wacky turn in the retail world this week as JCPenney reported a 6.2% same store sales increase and a huge gross margin expansion while Macy’s, Kohl’s and Walmart stumbled.

Chicago -- General economic conditions, federal, state and/or local regulations, and retail competition/consolidation ranked as the top three risk factors cited by retailers, according to a survey by BDO USA. Rounding out the top five: U.S. and foreign supplier/vendor concerns and labor (health coverage, union concerns, staffing) concerns.            
 

Seattle -- Starbucks Coffee Company is expanding its presence in Latin America, with plans to open locations in Colombia, Bolivia and Panama.

Starbucks said it is on track to open its first store in Colombia, in the city of Bogota, in mid-summer 2014 through a joint venture between two of its longest-term business partners in the Latin America region – Alsea and Grupo Nutresa. During the next five years, the joint venture plans to expand aggressively in Bogota and to other major cities in Colombia.

Austin, Texas - Compare Metrics, a provider of adaptive commerce navigation and discovery tools, has secured $3.8 million in follow-on financing. The financing is led by Austin Ventures with additional funding by existing investors Julie Allegro of Allegro Venture Partners, Bob Greene of Contour Ventures, Capital Factory, Mike Maples Jr. of Floodgate, Brett Hurt of Hurt Family Investments and independent investors Ralph Mack and Adam Ross.

Covington, La. — Stirling Properties has acquired John Toomey & Co., a commercial real estate company based in Mobile, Alabama. Stirling will add Toomey’s 1.8-million-sq.-ft. portfolio to its own, bringing the total to 15.5 million sq. ft.

John Toomey and his team will join Stirling Properties, with Toomey serving as broker/new business development coordinator for the Mobile area.

By Kathy Gersch, executive VP, Kotter International

At a time when sluggish-to-modest industry numbers have seemingly become the norm, and a protracted economic recovery inches forward, the recent spate of seemingly good retail and economic news has industry analysts and observers like myself raising a collective eyebrow.