Research Topic

Minneapolis – Tile Shop Holdings Inc. reported a 38% dip in net income during the second quarter of fiscal 2014 compared to the same period a year earlier. Net income fell to $3.96 billion from $6.48 billion, with Tile Shop citing adverse macroeconomic conditions, including home sales, as having a generally negative impact on the business.

New York – Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSLO) reported net income of $2.24 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2014, a turnaround from a net loss of $636,000 in the second quarter of the previous fiscal year. Revenues fell 11% to $37.6 million from $42.2 million, due to lower print and merchandising revenue partially offset by higher digital advertising revenue.

New York - U.S. retail and consumer merger & acquisition (M&A) activity during second quarter 2014 was driven by eight multibillion dollar transactions, anchored by the food and beverage (including alcohol and retailing) sectors, exceeding year-over-year deal value by 104% and volume by 52%.

Pittsburgh – Net income at GNC Holdings Inc. slipped during the second quarter of fiscal 2014, falling 2% to $69.89 billion from $71.69 billion in the prior year period. For second quarter 2014, the company reported consolidated revenue of $675.2 million, a decrease of 0.2% as compared to consolidated revenue of $676.3 million for second quarter 2013.

New York - A majority of parents plan to spend more on their children's back-to-school shopping this year, driven by rising costs or necessity rather than greater spending power. According the Accenture Back-to-School Shopping Survey, which polled 500 U.S. parents of children entering kindergarten through college, nearly all (89%) plan to do most of their back-to-school shopping in a physical store, though many will still use online to browse and search, or "webrooming."

Dublin, Ohio - The Wendy’s Company has extended its partnership and will continue licensing APT’s Test & Learn software for another three years. Wendy’s will use the software to test strategic initiatives in menu changes, remodels, marketing, pricing, and operations across its system of more than 6,500 company and franchise-operated restaurants.

London - Almost half (48%) of U.K. online shoppers have made an online purchase with a retailer based outside the U.K. According to the latest eCustomerServiceIndex (eCSI) results from EDigitalResearch and IMRG, 60% of the respondents who have shopped cross-border said that they choose to purchase with a retailer outside of the U.K. because of better prices, while another 60% said that they made the purchase because they couldn't get the product they wanted in the U.K.

Cleveland -- Shopping ranks as a favorite activity among nearly half of all teens and young adults aged 13 to 24. According to a new survey of more than 1,000 teens and young adults ranging from ages 13 to 24 conducted by Alexander Babbage in partnership with Forest City Enterprises Inc., shopping at malls ranked above a virtual shopping experience among the entire group, with the 13-to-17-year-old age group showing the strongest preference for a bricks-and-mortar shopping experience.