Corporate Governance

A federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary injunction blocking an Obama administration rule that would have allowed more employees to qualify for overtime pay by raising the salary limit to $47,476 from $23,660. The new regulations were set to take effect on Dec. 1.   The Labor Department said it “strongly disagreed” with the decision and was “considering all of our legal options.”        

Urban Outfitters posted sales and earnings for its third quarter that failed to meet analysts expectation amid a traffic slowdown and increased promotions at its Anthropologie and Free People stores.   Urban Outfitters earned $47 million, or 40 cents a share, in the third quarter ended Oct. 31, compared with $52 million, or 42 cents a share, in the year-ago period.   Sales rose 5% to $862 million, compared with $825 million a year ago. Same-store sales, which include online, rose 1%.  

J. Crew Group narrowed its loss in the third quarter even as its two-year sales slump continued amid a “difficult traffic environment.”     The retailer posted a net loss of $7.9 million in the quarter ended Oct. 29, compared to a loss of $759.7 million in the year-ago period. (J. Crew booked $845.9 million in impairment losses in the year-earlier period.)   Total revenue decreased 4. 2% to $593.2 million. Same-store sales fell almost 8%.  

The National Retail Federation welcomed a judge’s ruling late Tuesday that will prevent the Labor Department’s changes to federal overtime rules from taking effect as scheduled on Dec. 1.   U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant issued a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit brought by NRF, attorneys general from 21 states and dozens of business groups arguing that the changes are unlawful. The ruling effectively pauses implementation of the rules until the courts reach a final decision on their legality.  

A deluxe men's grooming concept has big plans for expansion through franchising.   The Gents Place plans to open 150 franchised locations over the next five years, in such markets as Texas, Georgia, Florida, California, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland and Virginia. Currently, the company is aggressively targeting Florida, with plans for 18 locations throughout the state.   

With the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention reporting more than 1,000 forborne outbreaks annually, Walmart is taking a proactive stance.  

As the holidays approach, this group of retailers is feeling very confident about its financial health.        Eighty-percent of middle-market retailers (revenue between $5 million and $2.9 billion) rated their overall financial condition as healthy or very healthy in the 8th annual CIT Retail Outlook. Sixty-percent expect an increase in total sales of more than 5% for the 2016 holiday season, compared to only 33% three years ago.    

The contractor that flies packages for Amazon and DHL Worldwide Express, ABX Air, has asked a federal judge to force its striking pilots back to work as it looks to put an early end to what could be a major disruption to holiday deliveries, Bloomberg reported.   

Among cities with more than 250,000 residents, Plano, Texas, has the highest median income in the land at $104,000. It’s also one of the nation’s fastest-growing cities, so Eden’s Preston Towne Crossing and Berkeley Square in Plano have expanded and upgraded their food and beverage options in kind.   Recently opened at Preston Towne Crossing are SusieCakes Bakery, a specialist in old-fashioned sweets, cookies, and cakes, and Vom Fass, a purveyor of cask-aged vinegars, oils, wines, and spirits.  

An LED upgrade has added to Rosenberg True Value Hardware’s to bottom line profitably.     The retailer, who operates two True Value stores in Michigan (in the towns of White Cloud and Grant), switched out the existing T8 fluorescent lamps in the stores in favor of 18-watt, 2200 lumen, 4000K, four-ft. T8 LED linear tubes (from EarthTronics, Muskegon, Michigan).