Costco Wholesale Corp.

Speaking at the Raymond James and Associates investor conference earlier this week in Orlando, Sam’s Club president and CEO Brian Cornell reaffirmed that Sam’s would achieve its first-quarter sales plan that calls for comp growth in the range of 1% to 3%.

By Joseph R. Bona, [email protected]

For a company so often on the leading edge of offering its shopper affordable fashions in the apparel and home categories, there is one area where Target has been slow to keep pace with the prevailing trend.

The March issue of Fortune contains the magazine’s annual ranking of the most admired companies, and this year’s list shows Target ranked 22nd. Only Walmart (11) and Nordstrom (21) were ranked ahead of the company. Other notable retailers on the list who ranked lower than Target included Costco (29), Best Buy (36), eBay (45) and Lowe’s (49).

The March issue of Fortune contains the magazine’s annual ranking of the most admired companies and this year’s list shows Walmart slipped two spots from the prior year and now occupies the 11 position.

Costco and BJ’s were out with quarterly results this week following the release of Sam’s Club results last week that included flat operating profits and a 2.7% same-store sales increase excluding gas. Those results, characterized by Sam’s Club president and CEO Brian Cornell as strong and very pleasing, are consistent with results out this week from club competitors. Both Costco and BJ’s reported quarterly results that were in-line with or beat analysts’ expectations.

Old Bridge, N.J. -- R.J. Brunelli & Co. said Thursday that it has completed a series of leases that will bring major retailers, restaurants, recreational facilities and personal services to sites in Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, Mercer, Union, Essex, and Bergen counties in central and northern New Jersey.