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Wal-Mart Stores failed to meet its promise of reigniting sales at its U.S. stores, a disappointment for a new leadership team charged with turning things around in the face of pressure from even cheaper discounters.
The retailer’s shares closed down 3.1 percent, despite the company’s reporting earnings that beat analysts’ expectations. U.S. sales are also still being hurt by a poorly executed decision, since reversed, to pare down the number of items Wal-Mart offers. Get the full story »
McDonald’s reported a stronger-than-expected sales rebound in January in Europe, its biggest market for revenue, sending its shares up nearly 3 percent in midday trading.
Sales at restaurants in Europe open at least 13 months jumped 7 percent last month, well above the 3.7 percent analysts had expected.
This was also a significant improvement from December, when sales in Europe fell 0.5 percent, rattling investors who worry that austerity measures will cut into spending in the region. Get the full story »
Discounting boosted quarterly sales at J.C. Penney Co.’s department stores but ate into margins, raising concerns about the company’s approach to win market share from rivals.
The retailer is under pressure to show it can grow after activist investor William Ackman took a 16.5 percent stake last month and said he would discuss how to improve the company’s performance. Penney adopted an anti-takeover “poison pill” soon after. Get the full story »
Kohl’s Corp. said Wednesday that it earned almost the same amount in this year’s third quarter as last year’s, though its revenue rose, because its costs rose faster.
The department store operator said after the market closed that it earned $194 million, or 63 cents per share, in the period ended Oct. 30, about even with the $193 million, or 63 cents per share, a year earlier. Get the full story »
U.S. retailers are poised to report their weakest monthly sales gains in six months as as the warmest October weather in decades and a still-stumbling economic recovery crimped demand for fall merchandise.
Analysts expect same-store sales to have risen 1.6 percent in October, compared with a 1.8 percent increase last year, according to Thomson Reuters data. Get the full story »
Teen apparel retailers led generally stronger-than-expected same-store sales in September, with a late start to the back-to-school season helping those chains beat Wall Street forecasts.
Department stores and luxury chains also posted forecast-beating results, though retail experts warn the gains could be short-lived as consumers draw up budgets for the holiday shopping season. Get the full story »
U.S. drugstore chain Walgreen Co. on Tuesday posted a stronger-than-expected rise in September same-store sales on strong demand in its pharmacy business. Get the full story »
An American Apparel clothing store in Los Angeles. (Lawrence K. Ho/Los Angeles Times)
Casual clothing chain American Apparel, suffering a steep sales slump and manufacturing problems, warned Tuesday that it may also default on loans and may not be able to stay in business.
The Los Angeles-based clothing maker, which in Illinois has locations in Chicago, Evanston, Oak Brook and Schaumburg, said it may default on loan agreements with its lenders, cited ongoing weakness in its business.
If that happens, the company said it may not have sufficient liquidity to stay in business for the next 12 months. Get the full story »
Lowe’s Cos. posted weaker-than-expected quarterly results but kept its forecast for same-store sales growth this year, assuring investors it will benefit once U.S. consumer demand picks up.
Lowe’s, the second-largest home improvement chain behind Home Depot, said it still expects sales at stores open at least a year to rise about 2 percent for the fiscal year, which some analysts viewed positively given soft consumer sentiment. Get the full story »
