The media was full of stories about the unexpected departure of JCPenney (NYSE: JCP) president Michael R. Francis. Nearly everyone who watches the retailer wonders how a man with his background — a…
Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) did manage to deliver on a dividend hike today. It is not very fun to claim, but the 20% hike creates a small analysis situation when you consider…
Lawn and garden products maker The Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (NYSE: SMG) lowered its fiscal year guidance after markets closed last night, and the stock is taking a hit on very heavy trading…
How often do ratings agencies talk about buyout rumors? That is what we are faced with this morning after a report was issued by Fitch Ratings covering Best Buy Co, Inc. (NYSE:…
The US Census Bureau reported this morning that retail sales in May fell by -0.2% month-over-month. Compared with May 2011, however, retail sales rose by 5.3%. For the three-month period of March…
RadioShack (NYSE: RSH), at 90 years old, operates in over 7,200 locations. Even with those advantages, the company might as well fold. The company stands as a fine example of how better-run…
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) is back on the chart breakout watch and it has risen at a time that the broader markets have been selling off. The shareholder vote last week…
Retailers are reporting May same-store sales today and it looks like the predictions for modest growth are being realized. Research firm Retail Metrics Inc. forecast that same-store sales would grow by just…
James Gorman, the CEO of Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), went on the record to say his firm’s behavior was perfect as it led the initial public offering of Facebook (NASDAQ: FB). Morgan…
Costco (NASDAQ: COST) continues to be the cream of big box retailers. May sales were up 7% to $7.67 billion. Same store sales were up 6%. Costco is not as large as…
Retailers have fared better than many other sectors over the past year, with the majority of share prices having risen although price to book values remain negative. Thus, either the sector is…
Oil has hit an extraordinarily low price, below $90 a barrel for WTI crude. That is the lowest level since October. It shows no inclination to spike back up. PMI data from Europe and China actually…
Costco (NASDAQ: COST) continues its extraordinary run as the most successful big box retailer. Its “club membership” system has bettered the more traditional store operations of Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and Target (NYSE:…
ZyngaZynga’s (NASDAQ: ZNGA) shares are down 15% over the past two days, a little more than those of Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) after its initial public offering. There are several critical difference between the…
Neither Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) nor Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) was expected to post big numbers for the quarter just ended. And they didn’t — but the numbers were better…
