Finance & Capital Management

Scottsdale, Ariz. -- GE Capital’s Franchise Finance business announced its first financing for the Corner Bakery Café brand. It  comes in the form of a $5.6 million loan to Texas-based MX Restaurants and Bakeries, which already operates seven Corner Bakery restaurants in the Houston and South Texas markets. MX will use these funds to pay off short-term debt related to a recent acquisition and to develop four additional units.  

Santa Clara, Calif. –- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is reportedly developing a new centralized approach to how it prioritizes and executes IT projects.    According to the Wall Street Journal, Wal-Mart will now consolidate all IT projects into a single portfolio overseen by CIO Karenann Terrell.  

Toano, Va. –- Lumber Liquidators missed Wall Street estimates for both net income and sales for the third quarter of fiscal 2014.    Net income totaled $15.7 million, down 23% from $20.4 million in the year ago period, amid higher expenses. Net sales rose 5% to $266.1 million from $254.3 million. Same-store sales dropped 4.9%, although they improved each month in the quarter as more inventory became available.  

Boston -- Palladin Consumer Retail Partners announced a majority investment in Harrys of London, a London-based luxury shoemaker and accessories house known for combining traditional craftsmanship with the latest footwear technology.    The Palladin investment will provide Harrys with capital to expand its operating team, open additional retail stores and invest in new initiatives to fund growth including marketing, merchandising, product development, and e/m-commerce.

Sunnyvale, Calif. –- Strong mobile revenue and proceeds from the sale of a portion of its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. helped Yahoo Inc. beat Wall Street estimates for earnings per share (EPS) and revenue in the third quarter of fiscal 2014. EPS totaled $0.52, up 62% from $0.32 the same quarter the prior fiscal year, and revenue grew 1% to $1.15 billion from $1.14 billion.  

New York -- Cohen Commercial Properties has completed an $8.65 million refinancing of Buttermilk Crossing, located in Crescent Springs, Ky. The 94%-occupied, 78,012-sq.-ft. shopping center is located immediately off of Interstate 71/75. Tenants include Staples, Outback Steakhouse, Petco and The UPS Store.   

Oak Brook, Ill. -- Retail Properties of America, Inc. announced that it was assigned a BBB-corporate credit rating from Standard and Poor’s Ratings Services with a stable outlook.    S&P indicated in its announcement that the rating reflects RPAI’s measured investment and operating strategy, and strengthening portfolio fundamentals.   

By Mike Johnson    Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores continues to expand its health care offerings with the announcement that its Sam's Club division will launch a private health insurance exchange for its small business members. Sam’s Club is partnering with insurance giant Aetna on the initiative.