Finance & Capital Management

PCMS, a supplier of software and IT consulting services, has named retail technology executive Andrew Winans as CEO of its Americas operation.
 

Seattle – Holiday markdowns and costs associated with growing its Nordstrom Rack outlet brand and planned entry into Canada had a negative impact on net earnings at Nordstrom Inc. during fourth quarter 2013. Fourth quarter net earnings slipped 6% compared to the same quarter the prior year, to $268 million from $284 million.

Net earnings for the full fiscal year remained almost flat, slightly rising to $735 million from $734 million. Both earnings figures fell short of Wall Street expectations.

New York -- G Asset Management, LLC ("GAM"), a private investment management firm, has made a proposal to acquire 51% of Barnes & Noble Inc., valuing the company at $22 per share, or about $1.3 billion. This is a 10% increase on the $20 per share offer G Asset made for 51% of Barnes & Noble in November 2013.

Beachwood, Ohio — DDR Corp has published its 2013 Corporate Social Responsibility report, which can be viewed at csr.ddr.com. The report features various initiatives taken by DDR employees throughout 2013

Paramus, N.J. — Vornado Realty Trust has announced an agreement to sell the 1.1 million-sq.-ft. Broadway Mall in Hicksville, Long Island, N.Y., for $94 million to an unknown buyer. The company purchased the mall in 2005 for $152.5 million.

In April 2012, the company announced its intention to reduce exposure to the enclosed mall business and to sell some of its other categories of retail shopping centers. This sale, Vornado’s last shopping center on Long Island, represents a continuation of that policy.

Jack Link’s plans to purchase Unilever’s meat snacks business, primarily sold under the BiFi brand (Germany, Benelux, Austria and Switzerland) and the Peperami brand (UK and Ireland). The sale is expected to close by the end of March.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The transaction, subject to customary closing conditions, also includes the manufacturing facility in Ansbach, Germany.

Dublin, Calif. -- Ross Dress for Less will open its first store in Oakland, Calif. on March 8, bringing the total to more than 250 stores in California, the retailer’s largest state. The new location will be in Foothill Square in Oakland.  

Together, Ross Dress for Less and DD’s Discounts currently operate approximately 1,300 off-price apparel and home fashion stores in 33 states, the District of Columbia and Guam.