News

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Ahead of its annual shareholders' meeting, Sears Holdings has provided first-quarter guidance calling for net income between $155 million and $195 million (between $1.46 and $1.84 per diluted share from continuing operations) versus a net loss from continuing operations of $165 million ($1.53 loss per diluted share from continuing operations), for the first quarter in 2011.  The above range includes approximately $235 million, after tax and minority interest, of gains from the sale of certain U.S. and Canadian stores.

PHILADELPHIA — Pep Boys has released preliminary financial results for its first quarter ended April 28 and expects sales to be between $524 million and $526 million compared with $513.5 million for the same period last year. Net income for the quarter is expected to be between $0 million and $2 million, compared with $12.4 million for the same period last year.
             

LAKELAND, Fla. — Publix's associates and board members will be pleased with the news that the company's private stock has increased from $22.40 per share to $22.70 per share, effective May 1. Since it is not publicly traded, only current Publix employees and members of its board of directors can buy Publix stock.

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — Enterprise software application company, SAP, has named Geraldine McBride as president of its North America region. In this role, McBride is responsible for all of SAP's business operations in the United States and Canada. She will report to Robert Enslin, president of sales and part of the SAP Global Managing Board.

SAN FRANCISCO — Gap Inc. has selected long-time H&M veteran, Stefan Larsson, as the first global brand president for Old Navy. Larsson will join the company by October.

Bentonville, Ark. -- The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has ordered Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to pay more than $4.8 million in back wages and damages to some 4,500 employees nationwide.

The assessment follows a departmental investigation of the retailer that uncovered violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act's overtime provisions.

Wal-Mart has been assessed another $463,815 in civil money penalties.

Chicago -- A report released Tuesday by ShopperTrak found that consumers are expected to shop and buy more in the week leading up to Mother's Day than they did last year.

According to the report, national retail sales, when compared to the same period last year, will rise 6% in the week leading up to Mother's Day, and foot traffic will increase 3.7%.
 

Norwalk, Conn. -- The CFOs of U.S. middle-market retailers are more optimistic about the current state of their own industry and the U.S. economy, although they are significantly more pessimistic about the global economy, according to the latest GE Capital U.S. Mid-Market Survey.

Fifty-one percent of retail CFOs say their industry will grow over the next 12 months — an increase of 25% over the previous wave of this survey, which was conducted in the third quarter of 2011.

Armonk, N.Y. -- A report released Tuesday by IBM found that the U.S. online retail sector grew more than 6% in March 2012. This upswing in March closes a quarter in which online sales were down slightly from the same period in 2011.

New York -- Shoe manufacturer Wolverine Worldwide Inc. announced Tuesday that it has partnered with equity firms Blum Capital Partners and Golden Gate Capital to acquire Payless ShoeSource parent Collective Brands Inc. for about $1.3 billion.