News

Chicago -- Year-over-year GAFO retail sales increased a slight 2.3% or the week ending Dec. 4, according to ShopperTrak’s National Retail Sales Estimate (NRSE), while the company’s Retail Traffic Index (SRTI) reported foot traffic remained flat for the same period.

New York City -- More than $17.5 billion has been spent online for the November-December 2010 holiday season to donate , marking a 12% increase versus the corresponding days last year, comScore reported on Wednesday.

New York City -- Nearly half of U.S. smartphone users say they have already, or soon will, use their phones to do mobile shopping, according to a recent survey conducted by ABI Research, and 53% also use, or intend to use, their smartphones for mobile banking.

Issaquah, Wash. -- Costco Wholesale Corp.'s profit climbed 18% in its first fiscal quarter, buoyed by sales from its consolidated Mexican operations and improved sales and traffic at its U.S. stores. Net income rose to $312 million for the period ended Nov. 21, up from $266 million a year earlier.

The results topped analysts' average forecasts.

Revenue rose 11% to $19.24 billion from $17.3 billion, also beating Wall Street's expectation.

Houston -- Men's Wearhouse said Tuesday that higher sales lifted its third-quarter profit by 31%, but its forecast for the fourth quarter missed Wall Street's expectations.

Net income rose to $25.3 million in the three months ended Oct. 30, from $19.3 million a year earlier. Revenue increased 19% to $550.1 million, from $462 million in the previous year. Tuxedo rental revenue rose 13% and accounted for more than 20% of the company's quarterly total. Other clothing sales climbed 22% in the quarter.

New York City -- Wal-Mart Stores will stop paying an additional $1 an hour for working Sundays, taking a bite out of its single biggest expense, Bloomberg reported. The change will take effect at Walmart stores, Sam’s Club outlets and warehouses.

The move, which takes effect next year, applies only to associates hired after Jan. 1, the report said. It wouldn’t affect the retailer’s current U.S. staff, which numbers approximately 1.4 million.

New York City -- Home Depot on Wednesday slightly raised its fiscal 2010 earnings guidance for the second time in two months as the market for home-improvement projects slowly begins to improve. The retailer plans to open 10 stores in 2011, and has budgeted $1.3 billion in capital expenditures. and about $2.5 billion on share repurchases.

The retailer now expects net income from continuing operations to be $1.97 per share, up from prior guidance of $1.94 per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, on average, also predict $1.94 per share.

Ankeny, Iowa -- Casey's General Stores reported on Wednesday that the costs of its recapitalization plan and its defense against hostile bids by competitor Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard take a bite out of its second-quarter net income.

Casey's said it earned $21.7 million for the quarter that ended Oct. 31, compared with $33.6 million in the same quarter last year. The results include roughly $19.4 million in expenses related to its recapitalization plan and the dispute with Couche-Tard.

Minneapolis -- Target on Wednesday outlined a series of comprehensive sustainability commitments. The retailer set several key milestones for resource use, waste elimination and carbon footprint reduction, which the company aims to achieve by 2016, including earning the Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star designation for at least 75% of its buildings.

Target’s other 2016 goals are: