Data & Analytics

Staples says the $6.3 billion deal to buy rival Office Depot is still on track despite the retailer’s deepening sales declines in the second quarter.

Minneapolis – Target Corp. exceeded Wall Street projections with net earnings of $753 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2015, a 221% increase from $234 million the same period the prior fiscal year. Declining selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses and loss from discontinued operations helped boost profits as sales climbed.

Target reported net sales of $17.4 billion, up 2.8% over the same period last year.

Pittsburgh – American Eagle Outfitters Inc. flew high in the second quarter of fiscal 2015, surpassing Wall Street expectations for profit and revenue. AEO reported net income of $33.26 million, an almost six-fold increase from $5.81 million in the prior year period.

The growth pace of cost of sales and expenses was slower than that of sales, helping AEO report such a dramatic rise in profit. Operating income also significantly improved. Total net revenue increased 12% to $797 million from $711 million, aided by an 11% jump in same-store sales.

In today’s news cycle, it’s become somewhat standard fare to read reports of a significant breach in the retail world. From Target to Neiman Marcus, UPS to eBay and even restaurants like P.F. Chang's and Dairy Queen, 2014 resulted in major retail breaches totaling 100 million credit cards and 313 million personal records. But it’s not just the big names that have targets on their backs; as Verizon’s 2015 Data Breach Investigations Report details: “the attack methods are becoming more varied, even against small businesses.”

Reagan era appointee David Stockman is no fan of the current administration or the Federal Reserve’s long-running easy money policy and to make his case against the flawed strategy he singles out four of the biggest names in department store retailing.

Stockman is the Reagan era director of the Office of Management and Budget who became a Wall Street executive and now regularly opines on the troubled state of the economy and looming dangers caused by nearly eight years of zero interest rates he contends have produced all manner of distortions in the economy.

Scottsdale, Ariz. – JDA Software Group Inc. is launching new integrated fulfillment capabilities that combine the functionality of JDA intelligent fulfillment and labor productivity solutions with order management solutions from IBM Commerce. This technology collaboration is designed to let retailers process orders more intelligently and profitably across sales channels in real-time, to ensure customers have a positive end-to-end buying experience.

Veteran finance executive and former top Walmart executive Wan Ling Martello has joined the board of directors of Alibaba as the Chinese e-commerce giant eyes growth in the U.S.

Oak Brook, Ill. – Increased retail operating expenses, primarily related to store acquisitions and advertising, helped reduce profit at Ace Hardware Corp. during the second quarter of fiscal 2015. Net income totaled $57.5 million, a 13% drop from $66.5 million the same quarter a year earlier.

Consolidated revenues fared better, rising 6% to $86.2 billion from $84.8 billion.