Winter Holidays

Fort Worth -- Pier 1 Imports' same-store sales rose 10.3% in December, helped in part by more customers and higher average receipts. The company lifted its fourth quarter guidance.

Pier I used fewer promotions and clearance prices during the month than it did last year, said president and CEO Alex Smith in a statement.

Columbus, Ohio -- Retail same-store sales eased to 3.2% growth in December in the wake of November’s exceptionally strong promotional activity and an ongoing shift toward online shopping, according to Kantar Retail. The sales-weighted composite for the 31 retailers reporting -- most of them apparel retailers -- was weaker than the 5.6% same-store sales gain last month, but slightly better than the 3.0% gain in December of 2009. (The calculations no longer include Walmart, which stopped reporting monthly results in 2009. )

The fourth installment of family movie night, a collaboration between Walmart and Procter & Gamble, is set to air Jan. 8 at 8 p.m. EST on Fox. The movie is called Change of Plans, and the plot line revolves around how lives can be turned upside down with a phone call. Also of interest is an upcoming CNBC special on Target, but more on that later.

TJX reported same-store sales of 2% December, beating Wall Street estimates for a 2.5% decline. Total sales rose 6% to $3 billion.

"I am extremely pleased with December's sales results, as we significantly exceeded our plans during this important period," TJX CEO Carol Meyrowitz, CEO, TJX.

New York City -- Discounters reported mixed results for December sales, with many, including Target Corp. and Costco Wholesale Corp., posting gains that fell below analysts’ expectations.

Target Corp. said its same-store sales edged up 0.9%, well short of analyst expectations for a  4% increase. The chain said weaknesses in electronics, toys and some home categories offset strength in grocery and apparel items.

MINNEAPOLIS - Despite an easy prior-year comparison, Target fell short of its December same-store sales guidance with a disappointing 0.9% gain. The company had forecast December comps in the low to mid single-digit range after it released November results, which saw comps advance 5.5%. Analysts were expecting the company to report a 4% December gain.

Berwyn, Penn. -- Retailers are likely to experience high demand for winter goods during the upcoming week. Beginning this weekend and carrying through next week, virtually all of North America should prepare for below normal temperatures, according to Planalytics. Most locations east of the Rockies can expect temperatures to trend 10°F to 20°F colder than both normal and last year, with the main exception being the Southwest where temperatures will trend normal to slightly above normal.

The final holiday numbers are in from online measurement firm comScore and it was a record year. November and December online sales increased 12% to $32.6 billion and, considering the surge in traffic that takes place at Walmart.com during those months and the increasing level of cross-channel integration, the retailer likely captured at least a fair share of the growth.