Business Analytics

New York -- Barnes & Noble Inc. said is cooperating with a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into its accounting.

The SEC notified the bookseller Oct. 16 that it was investigating the company's restatement of earnings announced in July.
 
The agency’s New York regional office also said it was looking into a former non-executive employee's allegation that the company improperly allocated certain expenses between its Nook e-reader and retail businesses.

Nashville, Tenn. – Genesco’s net earnings fell 34% to $27.7 million, from $42.1 million during the third quarter of fiscal 2013 for Genesco. The company also reported a slight increase in net sales, to $666.3 million from $664.4 million, during the same period.

Specialty retailer Five Below offered a somewhat muted outlook for holiday sales despite posting impressive growth in third-quarter same-store sales and achieving record expansion in 2013.

The company has opened 60 new stores this year and its same-store sales grew 9% during the period ended Nov. 2. Of the new stores opened this year, 28 came online during the third quarter and 11 of those were in Dallas, a new market for the rapidly expanding company.

Columbus, Ohio – Big Lots reported a net loss of $9.5 million for the third quarter of fiscal 2013, up from a net loss of about $6 million in the year-ago period. The retailer also said it will exit the unprofitable Canadian market, which it entered through an acquisition in 2011.

Net sales grew about 2% in the same period, to $1.15 billion from $1.13 billion, and consolidated same-store sales declined about 2.5%.

A record 700 new Dollar General stores are slated to open in 2014, the company announced Thursday morning after reporting third-quarter results and tempering its full-year sales forecast.

Same-stores sales at Dollar General increased 4.4% and total sales increased 10.5% to $4.38 billion during the third quarter ended Nov. 1. Profits increase 14% to $237 million from $208 million and earnings per share increased 19% to 74 cents from 62 cents.

Issaquah, Wash. -- Costco Wholesale Corp's November same-store sales missed analysts' expectations, hurt by lower gasoline prices and weak foreign currencies.

Same-store sales were up 2% in the four weeks ended Dec. 1, including the impact of fuel sales and foreign exchange, short of the 3% gain analysts expected.

November net sales rose 5% to $8.78 billion.

Excluding the negative impact of foreign exchange and falling gasoline prices, same-store sales rose 4%.

Canadian dollar-store operator Dollarama reported an increase in sales and an improvement in net earnings for the third quarter ended Nov. 3. The quarter was characterized by continued growth in the store network and solid comparable store sales growth.

Sales for the quarter increased by 14.2% to $522.9 million from $458 million in the year-ago period. The increase was driven, in part, by the growth in the number of stores in the past 12 months, from 761 stores on Oct. 28, 2012 to 847 stores on Nov. 3, 2013.

Cincinnati – Kroger Co. reported a lower third-quarter profit that matched Wall Street's view. Net income fell to $299 million from $317 million a year earlier, partly on the costs from the pending acquisition of Harris Teeter.