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Los Angeles -- Survey data from PriceGrabber, an Experian company, said that many consumers will continue to hit the stores through the final days leading up to Christmas.

Results from PriceGrabber's fourth winter holiday shopping survey found that 41% of consumers plan to shop between Dec. 21 and Dec. 24 for holiday gifts.

New York City -- Macy’s said Monday it has brought back its “24-hour” stores for three all-nighters beginning Dec. 21. Starting at 7 a.m., 14 Macy’s stores will stay open for 83 hours straight for non-stop shopping until Christmas Eve on Dec. 24 at 6 p.m.

Another 27 Macy’s stores will stay open until 2 a.m. on those same three nights.

Atlanta -- The SpendTrend analysis released Friday by First Data Corp., which tracks same-store consumer spending by credit, signature debit, PIN debit, EBT cards and checks at U.S. merchant locations, found that overall year-over-year dollar volume growth was up 7.3% in November 2011, down from October’s 9.4% growth.

November 2011 had tough comparables as November 2010 was a particularly strong month, with dollar volume growth up 8.1%, according to First Data. November 2011 transaction growth was 6.1%. 

New York City -- The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment showed Friday that confidence among U.S. consumers rose more than forecast in December as Americans’ outlooks improved. 

The index rose to 67.7, a six-month high, from 64.1 at the end of November. The median estimate of 73 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News called for a reading of 65.8. The gauge averaged 89 in the five years leading up to the recession that began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009. 

Bentonville, Ark. -- A Friday report by Reuters said that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. disclosed an agreement Thursday to sell more than 70 million shares by a firm controlled by members of the founding Walton family.

Walton Enterprises LLC, controlled by S. Robson Walton, Alice L. Walton, Jim C. Walton and the John T. Walton Estate Trust, registered for sale 70,615,608 shares of company stock. That represents about 2% of Wal-Mart's outstanding shares.

Abilene, Kan. -- Duckwall-ALCO Stores reported Friday that it recorded a profit of $0.1 million in the quarter ended Oct. 30, compared with a loss of $2.1 million in the year-ago period.

Sales increased 3.6% to $109.8 million, and same-store sales excluding fuel centers increased 2.7%. 

Optimism, skepticism, confidence and concern are among the wide range of emotions shared by Walmart trading partners who participated in the Second Annual Supplier Survey conducted by Connecting Northwest Arkansas. 

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Thursday said that consumer confidence in the U.S. was little changed for a second week, holding at a level typically reached during past recessions.

The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index was at minus 50.3 in the period ended Dec. 4, after a reading of minus 50.2 the prior week. The gauge has been at minus 50 or worse for 11 of the past 12 weeks.

Yonkers, N.Y. -- Despite flagging consumer confidence, December's Consumer Reports Index, a measure of overall consumer financial health, showed that the holiday season is off to a good start, with excellent activity in November and the prospect of a strong December.

The Past 30-Day Retail Index for December was 13.9, up from 12.4 a year ago, and planned spending for December was also strong at 12.7 compared to 11.8 last year. Among the categories comprising the Retail Index, the largest gains were in personal electronics.

New York City -- Barnes & Noble said Thursday it has earned the top rating of 100% for the fourth year in a row in the 2012 Corporate Equality Index, an annual survey administered by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.

Barnes & Noble joins the ranks of 190 other major U.S. businesses, which received top marks for their treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees and consumers.