Corporate Governance

Mondelez Global sold its SnackWell’s brand cookie and snacks business to the Back to Nature Foods Company, a joint venture between Brynwood Partners VI and Mondelez.

Brynwood VI and Mondelez Global formed the Back to Nature joint venture in 2012 through a structure whereby Brynwood VI acquired operating control and Mondelez Global retained a minority position in the new company.

The nation’s largest egg producer said premium prices for specialty products and an acquisition allowed it to growth sales and nearly double profits during its second quarter.

An IPO from payment processor Square and the widespread reality of same day delivery are a few of the technology-oriented predictions, offered by Fortune’s San Francisco-based writer JP Mangalindan.

Minneapolis -- Target Corp. admitted Friday that “strongly encrypted PIN data” was removed during the hacking that compromised some 40 million credit- and debit-card accounts between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15. The retailer said it remains “confident” that customers’ PIN numbers are safe and secure.

New York -- Online discount retailer Overstock.com plans to let shoppers pay with the digital currency Bitcoin starting in June, according to The New York Times.

The report said the retailer is reviewing several third-party firms that facilitate Bitcoin transactions, and that it hopes to have one place by mid-January.

If the plan is carried out, Overstock will be the most prominent retailer to accept Bitcoin as a form of payment.

Los Angeles – Newegg has filed an opposition to Soverain Software's petition for the Supreme Court to review a January 2013 ruling by the Federal Court of Appeals in the Eastern District of Texas that found Newegg and other e-commerce retailers did not violate a patent on e-commerce shopping cart technology held by Soverain. In district court actions in the Eastern District of Texas, Soverain had obtained settlements and won jury verdicts estimated at more than $70 million.

Dallas – Michaels Stores Inc., which has been privately held since 2006, is planning to launch an IPO in 2014. According to a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), private equity owners Bain Capital Partners and Blackstone Group will retain control of the retailer after the public stock sale.

Deerfield Park, Ill. – Walgreens received a perfect score of 100% on the 2014 Corporate Equality Index (CEI). This marks the ninth year Walgreens earned 100% on the CEI, a national benchmarking survey and report on corporate policies and practices related to LGBT workplace equality, administered by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.

New York -- The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) for the U.S. increased 0.8% in November to 98.3 (2004 = 100), following a 0.1% increase in October, and a 1% increase in September.

Framingham, Mass. – 3-D printing technology is rapidly gaining traction and heading toward mainstream acceptance and usage. According to a new research study from International Data Corporation (IDC), the worldwide 3-D printer market will experience tremendous unit and revenue growth from 2012 to 2017, with compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) of 59% and 29%, respectively.