Financial/Banking

Watsonville, Calif. – Expenses in benefits, share-based compensation, and inventory that exceeded forecasts helped keep West Marine Inc. in the red during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. West Marine reported a net loss of $10.3 million, a small improvement from the $11.3 million net loss it reported in the same quarter the prior fiscal year.

Net revenues grew 9% to $129.4 million from $118.8 million. The addition of a 53rd week in fiscal 2014 helped boost that figure. Same-store sales rose 2.8%.

Fort Worth, Texas – RadioShack Corp. will reportedly auction the leases of 2,000 stores in March, while GameStop has entered the picture as a bidder. According to Reuters, the bankrupt retailer received court approval to hold the auction on March 17 with Standard General making an initial “stalking horse” bid of $200 million and will move the date back to March 23 if more bidders emerge.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings Co. on Thursday reported its 11th consecutive quarterly loss, posting a loss of $159 million for the fourth quarter, down from loss of $358 in the year-ago period, amid cost reductions.

The struggling chain saw its losses for the full year widen to $1.7 billion from $1.4 billion, marking its fourth straight year of decline. Total long-term debt rose to $3.2 billion from $2.9 billion a year earlier.

Austin, Texas - The credit card industry is lagging behind its own deadline to get more secure microchip-enabled credit cards into consumers’ wallets by October 2015. According to a new survey from CredtCards.com, just three out of every 10 U.S. credit cardholders have a chip card.

The adoption rate is significantly higher among high net worth cardholders, but at 49%, it still means more than half of the richest Americans ($100,000 or more in investable assets) lack chip-based card security.

Toronto – Sears Canada Inc. swung from profit to loss in a dismal fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. The retailer reported a net loss of $123.6 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014, compared to net income of $373.7 million in the same period a year earlier.

The net loss included a pre-tax asset impairment charge of $99.3 million related to leasehold improvements in full-line and Hometown stores, and intangible assets. In addition, the net income a year earlier included several one-time tax gains, real estate sales and legal settlements.

Framingham, Mass. – Staples Inc. has launched the “Staples Business Loans powered by Lendio” service to provide access to capital for small business owners. Staples teamed up with Lendio, a financial technology firm and small business-lending marketplace, to deliver a suite of funding options.

Staples Business Loans offers more than 20 different funding options and the flexibility for businesses to use the money for whatever their business needs.

Staples Inc. is tapping into a new revenue stream by launching a lending program aimed at small businesses.

Staples has launched the Staples Business Loans powered by Lendio service to provide access to capital for small business owners. Staples has teamed up with Lendio, a financial technology firm and small business-lending marketplace, to deliver a suite of funding options.

Staples Business Loans offers more than 20 different funding options and the flexibility for businesses to use the money for whatever their business needs.

Toronto -- Canadian retail giant Hudson’s Bay Co. (HBC) has entered into two blockbuster deals, forming joint ventures with Simon Property Group and Canada’s RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust to target real estate growth opportunities in the United States and Canada. Both ventures are structured to facilitate an IPO at a later date.

The partnerships, which combined are valued at about $3.4 billion at the current exchange, are the latest example of retail companies moving to leverage their valuable real estate assets.