Finance & Capital Management

Walmart showed its muscle in the first quarter, reporting a big jump in online sales, an increase traffic at its U.S. stores, and earnings that beat the Street.   

Gap Inc.’s reported a 12% jump in first quarter profit amid another strong performance from its Old Navy division.    Net income rose to $143 million, or 36 cents per share, in the quarter ended April 29, from $127 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier. Its results easily beat the Street, which had predicted earnings of 29 cents per share.   

The Buckle is losing its finance chief.   The apparel retailer on Thursday said that Karen B. Rhoads, senior VP of finance and CFO, will retire later this summer. She will continue to serve as a member of the board. Rhodes joined the Buckle in 1980, and has served as CFO since 1991.     The retailer has hired an executive search firm to assist with the search for Rhoads’ replacement. Rhoads will remain in her role to support the search and to assist with the transition.  

Ace Hardware reported a slight increase in revenue during the first quarter, as well as more substantial progress in net income.   Revenue came in at $1.2 billion, up 0.1% from the first quarter of 2016. Net income of $28.3 million was up 8.4% over the year.   Same-store sales were down 0.2% due to decreased customer traffic, reported by the approximately 3,000 Ace retailers who share daily retail sales data.  

Expansion-minded Ross Stores turned in a solid performance in its first quarter amid what its CEO called “uncertainty and volatility” in the retail environment.    The off-price retailer, which is opening some 80 to 90 stores annually, reported earnings per share for the quarter ended April 29, 2017 of $.82, up from $.73 in the year-ago period. Net earnings grew to $321 million, compared to $291 million in the prior year.   

Meijer is expanding its already considerable footprint in its home state of Michigan.    Meijer on Thursday opened its first locations in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula area, in Escanaba and Sault Ste. Marie. The 192,000-sq.-ft.-supercenters, built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, are the latest in a $375 million investment this year that includes the construction of seven new Meijer supercenters and remodel projects for 22 additional stores in Indianapolis, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky. 

Although Walmart is an old-school retailer, it is not afraid to learn new tricks and to shift its thinking. This youthful and innovative approach has helped it deliver another solid set of results in a highly competitive market.  

When it comes to expanding globally, the United States is the leader of the pack.   That’s according to CBRE Group Inc.’s 10th annual study of international retail expansion, which surveyed 166 cities across 51 countries regarding how many international retailers had debuted in their markets in 2016. The survey found that retailers’ expansion into new markets increased by 2% in 2016, down from 3.1% in CBRE’s 2015 study.