News

New York -- Shoppers reliance on mobile devices is reflected in a new back-to-school survey by Retale, a location-based shopping platform aggregating weekly circulars from top line retailers for mobile and digital devices.

Among parents that own a mobile device (e.g., smartphone, tablet), 73% use them to shop for back-to-school items, with viewing deals (97%) and comparing prices (96%) being the most common mobile shopping activities.

Charlotte, N.C. -- The Cato Corporation reported that net income rose 6% to $15.7 million for the second quarter ended Aug. 2, from $14.8 million last year.

Sales increased 6% to $243.8 million, from $229.4 million last year. Same-store sales increased 3%.

"Second quarter same-store sales were in line with our year-to-date trend," said John Cato, CEO. "However, we continue to expect the second half earnings per diluted share will be within our original guidance range.”

Jacksonville, Fla. -- Stein Mart Inc. reported net income of $1.7 million for the second quarter, reduced from $3.4 million last year on higher healthcare costs.

Total sales increased 2.5% to $298.2 million, while same-store sales increased 1.3%, the retailer’s ninth consecutive quarter of comparable store sales gains.

By Michael Hirschfeld, senior VP of JLL’s National Retail Tenant Services

By Deena Coffman, IDT911 Consulting

Retailers working to improve their security posture have a new threat to consider: Backoff malware. Although its appearances have been traced back as early as October 2013, Backoff is still inflicting harm in the retail sector by actively targeting point-of-sale systems, and the United State is its favorite target, according to TrendMicro’s analysis.

New York -- Christopher Finazzo, former executive VP and chief merchandising officer for Aeropostale, has been sentenced to eight years in prison after being convicted of defrauding the company and taking more than $25 million in kickbacks from a key vendor.

Finazzo, who was found guilty in April 2013 of 14 counts of mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy, was also ordered to forfeit more than $25 million and pay the company $13.7 million in restitution.

New York -- Dollar Tree Inc. reported that net income in the second quarter dipped 2.6% to $121.5 million, from $124.7 million a year earlier, amid higher freight costs and investments in higher-value products.

Revenue rose 9.5% to $2.03 billion, and same-store sales increased 4.5%, beating Wall Street estimates of a 2.5% rise. It was the chain’s26th consecutive quarter of positive comparable store sales growth.

New York -- Family Dollar said it favors a smaller deal with potential buyer Dollar Tree, and firmly rejected an offer for takeover by larger competitor Dollar General.

Following an $8.5 billion offer last week by Dollar Tree, Dollar General offered a $9 billion, all-cash deal.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings Corp. on Thursday reported a bigger-than-expected loss in its second quarter – the retailer’s ninth consecutive quarterly loss – amid weak sales. The retailer also announced it may close additional stores on top of the 130 closures already underway this year.

Sears also said Thursday the company plans to explore options with lenders to achieve more long-term capital-structure flexibility in the coming six to 12 months.

York, Pa. -- The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. reported a loss of $36.2 million in the second quarter, narrowed from a loss of $37.3 million in the year-ago period.

Revenue edged up 1.1% to $563.5 million, compared with $557.1 million in the prior year period. Same-store sales increased 1.6%.

“We were pleased that we achieved comparable store sales growth, particularly given the challenging promotional environment and continuation of soft traffic trends,” said Brendan Hoffman, CEO.