Finance & Capital Management

Plano, Texas — J. C. Penney Company, Inc. has named Ed Record executive VP and CFO, effective March 24. He will succeed Ken Hannah, who will remain CFO through that date to ensure a smooth transition.

As CFO, Record will be responsible for the financial operations of the company. He will report to Myron E. (Mike) Ullman III, CEO of J.C. Penney, and join the company`s executive board.

Consumers leveled off post-holiday shopping and spending in the beginning of the year due in part to severe winter weather in much of the country. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), January 2014 retail sales, excluding automobiles, gas stations and restaurants, were flat seasonally adjusted month-to-month, yet increased 3% unadjusted year-over-year.

Miami — Burger King Worldwide Inc. reported impressive net income growth during the fourth quarter and full fiscal year 2013. Consolidated net income rose 37% year-over-year to $66.8 million from $48.6 million in the quarter, and almost doubled from $117.7 million to $223.7 million for the year.

Ed Record, a former finance executive with Stages stores, Kohl’s, Belk and Federated, has been appointed to replace Ken Hannah as CFO at J.C. Penney.

Hannah joined J.C. Penney less than two years ago under the leadership of former CEO Ron Johnson, a former Apple executive who pursued a costly transformation strategy that alienated customers and led to sharp sales declines. Johnson was ousted last April and former J.C. Penney CEO Myron Ullman was brought back to restore growth and undo much of Johnson’s handiwork.

Los Angeles, Calif. — CIM Group has acquired a seven-asset portfolio that includes an office tower with ground floor retail and an enclosed regional shopping mall.

Sidney, Neb. — Net income and revenue increased at Cabela’s during the fourth quarter and full fiscal year 2013. For the quarter, net income rose 18% year-over-year to $80.1 million from $68 million, and for the year grew 29% to $224.4 million from $173.5 million.

Hanoi, Vietnam – Vietnamese property developer and mall operator Vingroup JSC is reportedly preparing to launch an e-commerce venture. According to Bloomberg, Le Thi Thu Thuy vice chairwoman of Vingroup, has left that position to lead an online subsidiary called VinE-com.

VinE-com will reportedly sell a wide range of products to Vietnamese consumers and compete locally with global e-commerce retailers including Ebay and China’s Alibaba. Thuy told Bloomberg VinE-com is looking to acquire other Vietnamese e-commerce providers.

New York - A new Verizon report has found that too many businesses, following their annual assessment for meeting the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, fail to maintain ongoing compliance – putting the businesses at an increased risk for data breaches, and financial and reputational damages.