Finance & Capital Management

New York – Aeropostale Inc. has adopted a poison pill that would be set into motion if a stockholder buys 10% of the company.  

The struggling retailer said it was not adopting the plan, effective November 26, 2013, in response to any takeover proposal. Rather, the plan aims to provide stockholders with adequate time to fully assess a takeover bid, and, if appropriate, allow the board time to explore alternatives to maximize stockholder value, the company said.

New York – Tiffany reported a 50% increase in net income in its third quarter of fiscal 2013, increasing to $94.6 million from $63.2 million. Net sales were $911.5 million, up 7% from $852.7 million.

Net sales growth was strong worldwide but especially pronounced in the Asia-Pacific region, where net sales increased 27% compared to the same period in the prior year. Tiffany credited global net sales performance as driving its net income growth.

Fort Myers, Fla. – Chico’s FAS reported declining net income during the third quarter of fiscal 2013 even as net sales grew. Net income totaled $35.8 million, down 15% from $42 million in the same period a year earlier.

Columbus, Ohio – DSW Inc. experienced a successful third quarter of fiscal 2013, with net income and total sales both rising from the same period in the previous year. Net income equaled $55 million, up roughly 10% from $50.1 million, while total sales of $633 million were about 7% higher than $593 million.

In one negative result, same-store sales fell 0.7%. However, the retailer opened 16 new stores and launched new omni-channel initiatives.

Plano, Texas – Myron Ullman, CEO of embattled department store chain J.C. Penney, has reportedly bought $1 million of company stock. According to the Associated Press, Ullman purchased 112,000 shares at $8.95 apiece on or around Nov. 22.

The Woodlands, Texas -- Conn's, Inc. has completed an expansion and extension of its asset-based loan facility with a syndicate of banks.

Fremont, Calif. -- Men's Wearhouse has turned the tables on Jos. A. Bank Clothiers, with a proposal to acquire its one-time suitor for approximately $1.54 billion. Men's Wearhouse is offering $55 per share for Jos. A. Bank, which represents nearly a 9% premium to the company's $50.32 Monday closing price.

Jos. A. Bank made an unsolicited $2.3 billion bid in early October for Men’s Wearhouse, which rejected the offer, calling "opportunistic" and "inadequate."

Deerfield Beach, Fla. — Konover South has bought back a portfolio of nine Florida retail shopping centers valued at more than $100 million. Konover had previously sold a share of the portfolio to an institutional investment partner. The buy-back returns complete ownership to Konover, which developed or redeveloped the properties over the years.

Peoples United Bank provided $75 million of new permanent financing for the transaction.

Undeterred by volatility in its sales results, leading footwear retailer DSW maintained its pace of expansion and opened 16 new stores to end the third quarter with 393 locations.

The operator of large format footwear stores that average about 22,000-sq.-ft., said its third quarter sales declined 0.7% while total sales increased 6.8% to $633 million due to the addition of the new stores. The third quarter comp decline is the latest development in what has been a tumultuous year from a sales standpoint.

The Children's Place president and CEO Jane Elfers focused on the positive following decreases in net and comparable-store sales for the third quarter, despite the company’s reportedly strong performance during the back-to-school period.