Data & Analytics

Mooresville, N.C. -- Lowe's second-quarter net income rose a better-than-expected 10%, helped by improving weather. But the chain lowered its full-year revenue outlook slightly, citing its year-to-date sales and prior assumptions for the second half.

For the three months ended Aug. 1, Lowe's Cos. earned $1.04 billion, up from $941 million in the prior year.

Revenue increased 6% to $16.6 billion, topping Wall Street's estimates.

Same-store sales were up 4.4%.

Framingham, Mass. -- Staples Inc. reported Wednesday that its net income in the second quarter declined 20% to $81.88 million, from $102.53 million in the prior year.  

Its results included $101 million of pre-tax restructuring and other related charges primarily associated with its closure of 80 stores, along with its plan to close approximately 40 stores in North America during the second half. (Staples had previously announced the planned closings.)

Sales were down 2% to $5.22 billion, which topped analysts' estimates.

Minneapolis -- Target Corp. on Wednesday reported a 61.7% drop in Q2 earnings. The chain also lowered slashed its annual profit outlook as it continues to deal with weak results in Canada, sluggish U.S. sales and the lingering effects of its data breach.   

Target earned $234 million in the quarter ended Aug. 2, down from $611 million in the year-ago period.

Revenue rose 1.7% to $17.4 billion, slightly above the $17.38 billion analysts had expected.

New York -- As analysts begin to speculate about the acquisition scenarios for Family Dollar – whether by Dollar Tree or Dollar General – one thing is clear: some store closures will occur.

According to a report by Wall Street Journal Online, a Dollar General takeover would close more stores than if Dollar Tree wins the bid. Dollar General said it is prepared to divest up to 700 of the combined company’s approximate 19,600 stores to satisfy antitrust regulators.
 

New York -- Taxi app company Uber introduced a trial service on Tuesday, offering on-demand delivery of medicine, toiletries and other drugstore products.

Uber is testing the "Uber Corner Store" over the next few weeks in parts of Washington, DC.
 

Atlanta -- Home Depot said its fiscal second-quarter net income rose 14% amid a rebound in its spring selling season and strong online sales. The retailer also raised its annual profit guidance.

"In the second quarter, our spring seasonal business rebounded, and we saw strong performance in the core of the store and across all of our geographies," stated Frank Blake, chairman and CEO.

For the three months ended Aug. 3, Home Depot Inc. earned a better-than-expected $2.1 billion, compared to $1.8 billion in the year-ago period.

Framingham, Mass. -- TJX Cos. said Tuesday that its second-quarter net income increased a better-than-expected 8% on strong sales in the United States and abroad. The retailer also lifted its full-year earnings forecast.

TJX earned $517.6 million for the period ended Aug. 2, compared with $479.6 million a year earlier.

Revenue rose 7% to $6.92 billion from $6.44 billion, beating Wall Street's estimate of $6.88 billion.

San Francisco -- Kenshoo, a provider of predictive media optimization technology, and RevTrak, a promotions platform that drives and measures in-store sales through digital coupons, announced the results of a partnership uniting offline conversions and paid search performance for omnichannel optimization for Staples Canada.

By Andrew Schneide, ZOG Digital

A 6.4% second quarter same store sales increase at U.S. stores enabled Home Depot to handily exceed analysts’ profit estimates and prompted the company to increase its full year outlook.