News

Fort Worth, Texas -- Pier 1 Imports plans to buy back up to $100 million of its common stock.

The chain said it had about 109.6 million outstanding shares as of Friday.
 

Naperville, Ill. -- OfficeMax on Friday said it is amending two credit lines and consolidated them into a new $650 million revolving credit facility that expires in October 2016.

The two existing agreements included a $700 million U.S. credit facility and a $60 million Canadian facility ($59.1 million U.S.) that were set to expire in July 2012.

There are currently no outstanding borrowings under the facility.
 

Commerce, Calif. -- 99 Cents Only Stores reported Friday that same-store sales for the second quarter rose 6.7%. The news comes just days after the discounter agreed to a $1.6 billion buyout by private equity firm Ares Management LLC and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

Total revenue for the quarter ended Oct. 1 rose 8.8% to $363 million.
 

Columbus, Ohio -- Facility Source, a global provider of facility maintenance and management solutions to retailers, has received an investment of $10 million from BMO Capital Markets’ Mezzanine Fund.

This infusion of capital will allow FacilitySource to fund growth and strategic capital expenditures, including expansion of its offices in North America and Europe, continued investment in its software applications to support retail facility management solutions, as well as pursue potential strategic acquisitions.

New York City -- U.S. retail sales in September grew at their fastest pace in six months, beating forecasts and rising 1.1%, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Excluding the auto sector, sales rose 0.6%, also better than expected. The increase gave retailers renewed hope for the upcoming holiday season.

The Commerce Department also reported that sales for August, which were originally reported as unchanged, were revised up to a 0.3% increase.

PITTSBURGH — Dick's Sporting Goods announced that it is honoring Breast Cancer Awareness Month with its "October -- The Power of Pink" campaign supporting the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Throughout October, Dick's Sporting Goods will feature a variety of pink ribbon items in its stores and online at www.DicksSportingGoods.com/pink from top brands including Nike, Reebok, Under Armour, Lady Hagen and MaxFli and is encouraging consumers to join in showing their support for the cause.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation Wednesday said that legislation introduced in the House to repeal debit card swipe fee reform would cost consumers more than $6 billion a year in savings that merchants plan to pass along to their customers.

SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook's influence on retail continues to grow as eBay announced that it has integrated the social network's Open Graph functionality into its storefront and fulfillment platforms.

PHOENIX — Ahead of its analyst and investor presentation Thursday, PetSmart announced that it is raising its third quarter guidance.

The company said it now expects earnings per share for the third quarter to range from 46 cents to 48 cents. Initial guidance called for an EPS range of 41 cents to 45 cents. For the full year, earnings per share guidance is increasing to $2.46 to $2.52 from a previous range of $2.40 to $2.48.

PLEASANTON, Calif. — Safeway reported net income of $130.2 million (38 cents per diluted share) for the third quarter of 2011 compared with $122.8 million (33 cents per diluted share) for the third quarter of 2010.

Total sales were $10.1 billion in the third quarter of 2011 compared with $9.4 billion in the third quarter of 2010, due primarily to higher fuel sales, a 1.5% increase in identical-store sales (excluding fuel) and a higher Canadian exchange rate.