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Mergers & Acquisitions

  • Sears grows its loss; adds board members

    Sears Holdings Corp. says its trend of deep same-store sales declines is slowing, but the company did report a wider loss in the fourth quarter.

    For the fourth quarter ended Jan. 30, Kmart and Sears same-store sales declined 7.2% and 6.9%, respectively, which was an improvement from the trend in the first three quarters of 2015. Sears reported a loss of $580 million, or $5.44 a share, compared with a loss of $159 million, or $1.50 a share, a year earlier. Revenue dropped 9.8% to $7.3 billion.

  • Veteran investment sales professional returns to CBRE

    Chicago -- CBRE Group announced that Blake Johnson has joined CBRE Capital Markets as executive VP. Based in Chicago, Johnson will join the firm’s Institutional Properties team and will be responsible for office investment sales, with a concentrated focus on Chicago central business district (CBD) office transactions. Johnson will partner with Paul Lundstedt, Dan Deuter, Tom Sitz and Cody Hundertmark to expand the firm’s market share in the region.

  • Victoria's Secret lifts L Brands

    The parent company of Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works credited the strength of its brands with helping it to buck the financial doldrums affecting many other retailers in the fourth quarter.

    For the period ended Jan. 30, L Brands earned $636 million, or $2.15 a share, up from $564.8 million, or $1.89 a share, a year earlier. Net income increased 13% to $636.0 million, compared to $564.8 million last year. Net sales were $4.395 billion, an increase of 8%. Same-store sales increased 6%.

  • Kohl's to dip its toes into outlet stores, smaller formats

    Kohl's plans to make a lot of interesting moves this year with new formats and underperforming stores after the company reported another lackluster quarter of financial results.

    For the fourth quarter ended Jan. 30, Kohl's said same store sales rose 0.4%. Total sales rose only 0.8% as unseasonably warm weather hurt sales of cold-weather goods. Revenue totaled $6.39 billion, up 0.8% from a year ago. Net income was $296 million, down 20%. Earnings per share for the quarter came in at $1.58, down from $1.83 a year ago.

  • Sales slowdown at Best Buy to continue?

    Softness in the mobile phone category continues to hinder growth at Best Buy Co., which reported a drop in same-store sales in the fourth quarter and continued online strength.

    For the fiscal quarter ended Jan. 30, the electronics retailer reported a decline in same-store sales of 1.7%. Specifically, sales of mobile devices and computing devices fell 6.8% in the United States. The category accounts for 43% of the company's total U.S. revenue.

  • Build-A-Bear adds toy, social media expertise to board

    Build-A-Bear is adding two new board members whose backgrounds should serve the company well as it moves forward with its transformation plan.

    Build-A-Bear announced that Tim Kilpin and Sarah Personette have been appointed to the company’s board of directors.

    Kilpin, 55, will serve as a member of the Audit Committee and as a member of the Compensation and Development Committee. Personette, 36, will serve as a member of the Compensation and Development Committee and as a member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

  • Whole Foods to take Instacart partnership to new level

    Whole Foods Market has been offering deliveries via Instacart in select markets for about a year, but reportedly is significantly extending the scope of the deal.

    According to Re/code, Whole Foods has at least in principle made an unspecified investment in Instacart. Whole Foods has also reportedly signed a five-year deal making Instacart its exclusive perishables delivery provider.

  • Record results for Ace Hardware

    Ace CEO John Venhuizen

    Even with one less week in the calendar year, Ace Hardware Corp. ran up its wholesale sales to a record $5.0 billion. Along the way, the Oak Brook, Illinois-based co-op delivered a pre-tax return on equity of 33%.

    “I'm honored to report the third consecutive year of record financial performance for the company," said John Venhuizen, president and CEO.

  • Lowe's goes high with growth in 2015

    Lowe's rode the same wave of recovery in the housing market as its rival Home Depot in the fourth quarter, topping its own expectations with substantial gains.

  • TJX results show where consumers are spending

    Off-price giant The TJX Companies attracted record numbers of bargain-hungry shoppers during the holiday period as the retailer reported record sales and profit sales for the fourth quarter.

    For the period ended Jan. 30, net sales at TJX Cos. increased 8% to $8.96 billion, and same-store sales increased 6%.

    Net income rose 2.8% to $666.5 million and diluted earnings per share were 99 cents, a 6% increase over the prior year’s 93 cents. Both income and sales exceeded expectations.

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