Finance & Capital Management

New York City -- The Talbots said on Tuesday that its board of directors has adopted a shareholder rights plan -- or a poison pill -- to protect its stockholders after a private equity firm disclosed it had acquired a sizeable stake in the company.

On Monday, Sycamore Partners LP revealed it had acquired a 9.9% stake in Talbots and said it planned to attempt to talk with the retailer about strategy and operations.

Reports put Talbots’ market value at $288 million, and suggest a buyout would exceed $400 million.

Naperville, Ill. -- OfficeMax reported Tuesday that it swung to a loss of $3.02 million in the quarter ended June 25, compared with net income of $11.8 million in the year-ago period.

Total sales dipped 0.3% to $1.648 billion from $1.653 billion, but beat Wall Street expectations of $1.63 billion. In the retail segment, sales decreased 0.7% to $767.3 million from $772.7 million. Same-store sales dipped 0.5%, but results were helped somewhat by stronger same-store sales in Mexico.

Washington, D.C. -- A Tuesday report from the Commerce Department showed that consumer spending dropped 0.2% in June, to $21.9 billion.

Personal income was virtually flat for the month, increasing 0.1% to $18.7 billion, which was in line with estimates.

SAN FRANCISCO —  Levi's announced that it has appointed Beto Guajardo as its new global VP strategy. In this role, Guajardo will be responsible for leading the development and execution of the brand's growth strategy and global business development.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Winn-Dixie Stores announced that it expects to report net sales of approximately $6.9 billion compared with $7 billion for the prior fiscal year (which included an extra week), reflecting a 0.1% decrease in identical-store sales. Net loss from continuing operations is expected to be approximately $30 million or 54 cents per diluted share, compared with net income from continuing operations of $37 million or 67 cents per diluted share for fiscal 2010. 

New York City -- Manhattan-based Atco Properties & Management said it has purchased Crossroads Center, a 99,000-sq.-ft. neighborhood shopping center in Austin, for $14.25 million.

The center is currently 70% leased to a mix of national tenants such as Bennihana, Chili’s, West Marine, Cycle Gear, as well as locals Trudy’s, Plucker’s and Big Daddy’s Burgers. 

New York City -- Coach reported Tuesday that net income for the fourth quarter rose 4% to $202.5 million, compared with $195.5 million in the year-ago period.

Revenue surged 9% to $1.03 billion, edging Wall Street estimates. Same-store sales rose 10.1% in North America.

Coach’s performance is in line with overall strength in the luxury category. During the recessionary onslaught, the company pushed sales of handbags priced under $300, but said its average retail price of handbags is now inching back up.

Indianapolis -- Simon Property Group announced Tuesday that its Premium Outlets division will expand four of its most productive Premium Outlet properties located in California, Florida, Illinois and Washington. 

Construction on these expansions is scheduled to begin in 2012, and total 450,000 sq. ft. of added space.