Finance & Capital Management

A Securities Exchange Commission investigation into some loans applied for by CBL & Associates is unfounded, the company maintained in announcing the results of an independent investigation.  

Dollar General continues to expand its store portfolio at a rapid pace.   The discounter on Monday opened its 13,000th store, in Birmingham, Alabama. The company operates approximately 675 stores in Alabama.    The new store is one of the planned 900 new stores Dollar General expects to open in 2016.

The chief executive of Hasbro Inc. has joined the board of directors of Gap Inc., effective Aug. 12.   The retailer said it is adding Brian D. Goldner to its board as the merchant focuses on its “next era of retail.” His appointment comes shortly after Gap posted a disappointing sales for the second quarter.   

Nordstrom Rack has announced a fourth location as it makes preparations to drop anchor north of the border.   Nordstrom announced that Nordstrom Rack will open a 35,000-sq.-ft. store at South Edmonton Common in Edmonton, Alberta, in fall 2018.     The property is owned and managed by Cameron Corporation and CREIT.    

J.C. Penney Co. continues to make progress in its turnaround efforts as its narrowed its second quarter loss and posted a gain in same-store sales even as Macy’s and Kohl’s posted declines.    The retailer also reaffirmed its full year forecast of a 3%- to 4% increase in same-store sales.    It’s been a busy few months for Penney, which has been opening expanded appliance departments and testing in-store partnerships with Ashley Furniture and Empire Today.  

Consumers cooled their spending in July.    Retail sales were flat in July, in line with a revised 0.8% gain in June, according to figures released Friday by the Commerce Department. The report ended three straight months of monthly gains.     Sales in July rose 2.3% from a year ago. Excluding automobiles and parts sales, sales fell 0.3% in July — the weakest reading since January, after a 0.9% gain in the prior month.     

Kohl’s Corp. beat analysts’ expectations for the second quarter even as its sales continued to show weakness.     The retailer posted a profit of $140 million, or 77 cents a share for the quarter ended July 30, compared with $130 million, or 66 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding certain items, earnings rose to $1.22 a share from $1.07 a year ago.   Revenue fell 2% to a better-than-expected $4.18 billion. Same-store sales fell 1.8%.