Research Topic

Woonsocket, R.I. -- CVS Caremark Corp. reported Thursday that profit for the fourth quarter fell 2%. The company cited client losses and fewer Medicare prescription drug program members for the lackluster performance.

Net income declined to $1.03 billion, compared with $1.05 billion in the year-ago period. Revenue fell 4% to $24.77 billion. Wall Street expected $24.98 billion in revenue.

New York City -- Costco Wholesale Corp. reported a January same-store sales increase of 9%, topping Wall Street expectations and leading the performances of the discount retail category.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a smaller same-store sales increase of 6.1%.

Target Corp. didn’t show the same strength, missing expectations because of strong winter storms during the month. Same-store sales edged up 1.7% for the month, missing the 1.9% increase predicted by Wall Street.

New York City -- Many retailers surprised with solid January revenue reporting on Thursday, despite snowstorms that raged across the country during the month.

The reports, many of which surpassed Wall Street expectations, offer encouragement that strength in consumer spending is continuing after a merry holiday season.
 
Costco Wholesale Corp, Victoria's Secret parent Limited Brands and teen retailer Wet Seal were among those that beat analyst expectations. Target, however, lagged, behind.

NEW YORK -- AnnTaylor Stores announced that, based upon stronger than anticipated fourth quarter sales, including positive comparable sales at both the Ann Taylor and LOFT brands, the company expects to report top-line and bottom-line results for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2010 that will exceed the current consensus of analyst expectations and be substantially higher than the fourth quarter of 2009.  The company said it also expects to report substantially stronger sales and earnings for fiscal year 2010 over fiscal year 2009.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. -- Whirlpool Corporation announced fourth-quarter net earnings of $171 million, or $2.19 per diluted share, compared with $95 million, or $1.24 per diluted share reported during the same period last year.  Fourth-quarter adjusted diluted earnings per share totaled $2.11 compared with $1.67 in the prior year.  Sales of $5 billion increased 4% from the fourth quarter of 2009.

Fourth-quarter operating profit totaled $202 million compared with $199 million in the prior year.  

New York City -- Teen retailers Abercrombie & Fitch Co., Aeropostale and American Eagle Outfitters will stop reporting monthly sales after Thursday.

Many retail executives say reporting sales from stores open at least a year puts too much focus on short-term results. 
 

Feeling confident that the worst is behind them, most retailers are ready to expand again as they turn their attention from steadying the ship to actively growing their business. That’s the big takeaway from Retail Horizons: Benchmarks for 2010, Forecasts for 2011 report. The annual study, sponsored by KPMG and the National Retail Federation Foundation, is widely acknowledged as the definitive state of the industry report.

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Tuesday by the National Restaurant Association said that restaurant industry sales are expected to reach a record $604 billion and post positive growth in 2011 after a three-year period of negative real sales growth.

The Association’s 2011  Restaurant Industry Forecast projects an industry sales increase of 3.6% over 2010 sales, which equals 1.1% in real (inflation-adjusted) terms.

New York City -- New York City residents spent nearly $200 million at about a dozen Walmart stores in the New York metropolitan area in 2010, up about 20% from the amount reported in a previous 12-month period, the company said Monday, according to Crain’s New York.

Although Wal-Mart does have any stores in New York City proper, the chain is determined to break into the market and is working to overcome opposition from labor, community and small business groups.

In the February issue of Chain Store Age, in our focus on mall-based social media (page 52), we referenced a fourth quarter 2010 study by Alexander Babbage, entitled the “Shopping Center Social Media Benchmark Report.”

Following are more details about the study, which found that “social media tools and networks are making it easier for shopping centers to relay information, interact with customers and generally stay connected.”