Finance & Capital Management

Santa Ana, Calif. -- In follow-up to its prior announcement that it would explore strategic alternatives, including a potential sale or merger, real estate services and investment firm Grubb & Ellis Co. said Tuesday that is exclusivity period with Colony Capital LLC, which had expressed interest in exploring a strategic transaction with Grubb & Ellis, ended on May 29. Grubb & Ellis said that, while it will continue its discussions with Colony, it will engage in additional discussions with other parties.

New York City -- Consumer confidence declined in May, according to the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index. The Index now stands at 60.8, down from 66.0 in April. The Present Situation Index decreased to 39.3 from 40.2. The Expectations Index declined to 75.2 from 83.2 last month.

New York City -- Regulators in South African on Tuesday approved Wal-Mart's 17 billion rand (about $2.4 billion) bid to buy a controlling share of Massmart Holdings Ltd. The Competition Tribunal of South Africa approved the deal on the condition that no job cuts take place for two years. It also requires the merged entity to give employment preference to 503 Massmart employees who lost their jobs.

New York City -- CVS Caremark Corp. won a $3 billion contract to provide pharmacy benefits to federal employees.

The contract has been handled by pharmacy benefits manager Medco Health Solutions since 2008. Medco disclosed on Friday that Blue Cross Blue Shield Association would not renew a contract that saw Medco handle mail order and specialty drug benefits for the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, which provides health insurance to federal government employees, retirees, and their families.

Warrendale, Pa. -- Teen clothing retailer rue21 posted net income of $9.6 million for the first quarter, compared with $5.8 million. The company boosted its full-year guidance based on its better-than-expected results.

Net sales increased 25.5% to $172.9 million. Same-store sales rose 5.2%.

During the quarter ended April 30, the company opened 39 new stores expanding its total to 677.
 

San Francisco -- Gap will enter the Italian outlet center market, opening a namesale store at the Vicolungo Outlet Center near Milan, on June 2.

New York City -- Seattle’s Best Coffee LLC, a division of Starbucks Corp., has asked a bankruptcy judge to reject Border Group’s request to end the companies’ licensing agreement.

Borders is not entitled to cancel the agreement and continue to use Seattle’s Best’s trademarks and products, the coffee company said today in a court filing. Seattle’s Best also disputed Borders’s claim that terms of the agreement are excessive.

Dallas -- In another sign that the luxury market is turning around faster than other retailing segments, Neiman Marcus’ third-quarter profit more than doubled.

The company's net income for the three months ended April 30 rose to $46.2 million, from $18.5 million.

Revenue rose 10% to $983.8 million, from $895.2 million last year. Same-store sales increased 9.7%.

Neiman Marcus operates 41 Neiman Marcus stores across the United States, 30 Last Call clearance stores and two Bergdorf Goodman stores in New York.

New York City -- The Tommy Hilfiger Group said Friday that it will begin selling men's clothing in 90 locations of The Bay, a Canadian department store.

Gary Sheinbaum, CEO of Tommy Hilfiger North America, said Canada's "robust economy and increasingly discerning fashion consumers" influenced the decision.

The company described the setup as a "shop-in-shop," encompassing about 500 sq. ft. The shop will open by November.

The company has a similar set-up in the United States with Macy’s.

New York City -- Consumers grew more confident in May amid job gains and slightly declining gas prices. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan final index of consumer sentiment increased to a three-month high of 74.3 from 69.8 in April.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected the index to be unchanged from the preliminary figure. At the same time, income expectations remained at low levels.