Corporate Governance

New York -- Wal-Mart Stores on Thursday confirmed a report from the Wall Street Journal that its U.S. chief administrative officer, Tom Mars, will step down in March. The company did not give a reason for his departure.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holding Corp. reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit for the fourth quarter before special items, boosted by lower costs.

The company said its net loss for the quarter ended on Feb. 2 narrowed to $489 million from $2.4 billion a year earlier. Total costs dropped 2.2% to $12.88 billion in the fourth quarter.

Sales declined about 1.8% to $12.26 billion, but beat analysts' average estimate of $11.77 billion.

Fort Meyers, Fla. -- Chico's FAS’ fiscal fourth quarter net income rose 26%, helped by new store openings and the same of more items at full price. The quarter also had an extra week of sales.

Chico’s earned $31.5 million for the 14 weeks ended Feb. 2, compared with $25.1 million in the 13-week period a year earlier.

Revenue rose 15% to $651.9 million, from $569.2 million. Wall Street analysts had expected higher revenue of $666.1 million.

Same-store sales rose 3.7%.  

Columbus, Ohio -- Limited Brands Inc. said that its fourth quarter net income in the 14-week period through Feb. 2, 2013, rose a better-than expected 14% to $411.4 million. That compares to a 13-week period that ended on Jan. 28, 2012, in which net income came to $359.4 million. The chain also forecast profit for the current quarter and fiscal year below analysts' expectations.
 

Menomonee Falls, Wis. -- Kohl's Corp. reported a lower fourth quarter profit on Thursday, hurt by markdowns during the holiday season. The loss was lower than Wall Street had expected. The retailer also forecast full-year earnings that fell short of analysts’ forecasts.
 
Kohl's said its net income fell to $378 million for the quarter ended Feb.2, from $455 million a year earlier. (The retail calendar for fiscal January 2013 included a fifth week, resulting in a 14-week fiscal fourth quarter and a 53-week year.)

Katherine Lugar will join the American Hotel & Lodging Association as president and CEO.

Lugar spent the past six years as EVP of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) where president Sandy Kennedy credited Lugar as a driving force behind the trade group’s growth and key legislative victories on behalf of the industry.

MINNEAPOLIS — Start-up expenses and other costs related to its Canadian entry reduced Target's earnings per share for the fourth quarter by approximately 18 cents.

The company reported fourth quarter net earnings of $961 million, or $1.47 per share, compared with $1.45 per share for the same period last year. Adjusted earnings per share, a measure the company believes is useful in providing period-to-period comparisons of the results of its U.S. operations, were $1.65 in fourth quarter 2012, up 10.1% from $1.49 in 2011.

CHESAPEAKE, Va. — Dollar Tree reported that consolidated net sales for the fourth quarter were $2.25 billion, a 15.4% increase compared with $1.95 billion reported for the quarter ended Jan. 28, 2012. Comparable-store sales increased 2.4%, on top of a 7.3% increase for the fourth quarter 2011.

Earnings per diluted share for the fourth quarter were $1.01, an increase of 26.3% compared with the 80 cents earnings per diluted share reported for the fourth quarter 2011.

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. — The TJX companies reported that sales for the 14-week fourth quarter ended Feb. 2 were $7.7 billion, a 15% increase over the prior year. Consolidated comparable-store sales for the quarter on a 13-week basis increased 4% over the prior year’s 7% increase.

Net income for the 14-week fourth quarter was $605 million and diluted earnings per share were 82 cents, a 32% increase over last year’s 62 cents.

NEW YORK — Coach announced that Zach Augustine will join the company as EVP, global environments, effective March 11, reporting to Reed Krakoff.

Augustine will lead initiatives across visual merchandising, architecture and creative cevelopment partnering with the other leaders to create a consistent and cohesive brand story.