Data & Analytics

PITTSBURGH — Dick's Sporting Goods reported a 57% increase in second-quarter net income, which was chiefly related to a big charge last year.

For the period ended Aug. 3, the retailer earned $84.2 million, up from $53.7 million in the prior-year period when it recorded a $32.4 million impairment charge tied to an investment in JJB Sports. Revenue rose 6% to $1.53 billion, short of analyst projections of $1.57 billion. Same-store sales edged down 0.4%.

Chairman and CEO Edward Stack said bad weather reduced traffic and hurt sales.

ATLANTA — A rebound in seasonal categories helped The Home Depot post double-digit same-store sales in the second quarter as it exceeded its own expectations.

Net sales at the world's largest home improvement retailer increased 9.5% to $22.5 billion in the quarter ended Aug. 4, compared with $20.6 billion in the same quarter last year. Comp-store sales increased 10.7% across the company, and increased 11.4% among domestic stores.

Net earnings for the quarter were $1.80 billion, up 17.2% from $1.53 billion in last year's 14-week second quarter.

MINNEAPOLIS — Best Buy said it earned $266 million in the second quarter, compared with a profit of $12 million in the year-ago period, amid cost cuts. Its results beat Wall Street expectations.

Revenue for the quarter, ended Aug. 3, edged down to $9.3 billion, from $9.34 billion last year. Analysts expected $9.13 billion. Same-store sales fell 0.6%, including a 0.4% decline domestically. Online sales rose 10.5%.

DALLAS — J.C. Penney Co. posted a wider-than-expected loss in the second quarter on a nearly 12% drop in revenue. But even though Penney’s results were worse than expected, there were small signs that interim CEO Myron Ullman may be starting to stop the bleeding related to former CEO Ron Johnson’s failed transformation of the chain.

The quarter was the first entirely under the watch of Ullman, who returned to Penney in April to undo the strategy put in place by Johnson, who planned to transform Penney stores into a series of branded in-store shops.

With the addition of an Android app, mobile workforce leader Gigwalk expects its on-demand workforce to soon exceed 600,000.

The two-year-old San Francisco-based technology company already has 325,000 workers, known as Gigwalkers, using its app on iPhones to perform a variety of mobile research and store audit functions. The addition of an app for Android phones is expected to more than double the number of Gigwalkers because Android phones are more prevalent in the market.

Home Depot has posted double digit comp-store sales in the second-quarter, exceeding its own expectations, thanks to a rebound in seasonal categories.

Net sales at the world's largest home improvement retailer increased 9.5% to $22.5 billion in the quarter ended Aug. 4, compared to $20.6 billion in the same quarter last year. Comp-store sales increased 10.7% across the company, and increased 11.4% among domestic stores.

Net earnings for the quarter were $1.80 billion, up 17.2% from $1.53 billion in last year's 14-week second quarter.

Best Buy withstood merchandising related disruptions during the second quarter to achieve on plan sales results and gain momentum heading into the back half of the year.

Domestic revenue of $7.81 billion increased 0.1% versus last year. This increase was primarily driven by the revenue from 57 net new Best Buy Mobile stand-alone stores that were opened predominantly in the third and fourth quarters of fiscal year 2013, partially offset by the comparable store sales decline.

Worse than expected second quarter sales results at Dick’s Sporting Goods sparked new consumer spending concerns and prompted the company to lower its full year profit forecast.

Dicks said sales for the quarter ended August 3, increased 6.6% to $1.5 billion, however same store sales fell 0.4%, versus a planned 2% to 3% increase, when adjusted for a 53rd week in 2012. Profits for the period totaled $84.2 million, or 67 cents a share, compared to $53.7 million, or 43 cents a share.

Barnes & Noble’s founder, chairman and largest shareholder, Leonard Riggio, is calling off his offer to buy the company’s retail business, following a worse-than-expected net loss of $87 million for the first quarter, compared to a loss of $39.8 million in the year-ago period. 

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — GE is leveraging social media as part of its Reimagining Home brand campaign, and holding a contest on its Tumblr page.

The brand is inviting consumers to submit their best cooking failure story to its Cooking Fail Redemption Tumblr page for a chance at redemption at GE’s headquarters, where the winner will re-create the same dish under the guidance of Chef Jeffrey Saad. Saad hosts United Tastes of America on the Cooking Channel.