Walmart & Sam's:  Dissecting the 11/14/13 Earnings Call: Rosalind Brewer on Sam's * Q3: opened 13 new and relocated clubs. * Sam’s Club comp of 1.1% without fuel. * Comp traffic grew 2.4% and comp ticket by 1.3% driven by softness in our tobacco business. * Grocery and beverage: low single-digit comp. * Technology and entertainment:  mid-single-digit negative comp. * Home and apparel:  mid-single-digit comp. * Apparel and jewelry: double-digit comp. * Membership income grew 8.1% * Q3 operating income grew to $466 million, an increase of 9.4% over last year. * Q4: plan to open two new clubs and one relocated club. * [...]

  "Breaking:  Walmart US Q3 comp sales decline 0.3%;  Sam's +1.1%;  Neighborhood Market rose approximately 3.4%"  "Our most important priority is growing top line sales, including comp sales," Duke added. "The retail environment, both in stores and online, remains competitive. Walmart has aggressive plans to help our customers enjoy the holiday season, and there is no doubt that we plan to win for our customers and shareholders throughout the holidays."  Read more   "Wal-Mart posts earnings of $1.14 a share vs. $1.13 estimate" at CNBC.  "The company posted third-quarter earnings excluding items of $1.14 per share, up from $1.08 a [...]

  "Walmart Announces Plans for Black Friday 2013"  "Compared to last year, Walmart will offer 65 percent more inventory on televisions and double the number of tablets...this year a 32" LED TV will be available at Walmart for $98. Last Black Friday, a 32" LED TV sold for $148 at Walmart."  Read more   "Kmart rent-to-own program turns $300 TV into $415 buy" by Lauren Coleman-Lochner at Bloomberg News via Star-Tribune.  "Kmart is introducing a rent-to-own program charging the equivalent of 100-plus percent annual interest, a move into a business that has drawn criticism for hurting low-income consumers.  The Lease-to-Own [...]

  "Walmart Doubles Down on Thanksgiving" by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC. "The world's largest retailer announced Tuesday that it will begin its in-store Black Friday sales at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day, two hours earlier than last year.  In addition, Walmart.com will begin offering Black Friday sales on a limited number of items Thursday morning—likely before the turkey is even in the oven."  Read more   "Food-Stamp Cuts Likely to Nick Retailers" by Jack Neff at Ad Age. "Kantar's ShopperScape data indicate that about 8% of primary shoppers used the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and/or the Women, Infants and [...]

  "Venezuelan military seizes major retail chain" by Girish Gupta at USA Today.  "Thousands of Venezuelans lined up outside the country's equivalent of Best Buy, a chain of electronics stores known as Daka, hoping for a bargain after the socialist government forced the company to charge customers "fair" prices.  President Nicolás Maduro ordered a military "occupation" of the company's five stores as he continues the government's crackdown on an "economic war" it says is being waged against the country."  Read more   "Amazon, Postal Service cut deal to deliver packages on Sundays" by Jay Greene at Seattle Times.  "The online [...]

  "Walmart Building its First C-Store" by Paul Gatling at NWA Business Journal.  "Wal-Mart said Wednesday it is building a convenience store in Bentonville, a first for the retail giant.  A company spokesperson said the store at the northwest corner of the intersection of Arkansas Highway 102 and South Walton Boulevard will be open by the spring...Walmart spokesperson Deisha Barnett said. “We’re excited about the opportunity to test a new store and learn.”  Barnett said there are no plans to build additional stores like this."  Read more   "Kroger's Dillon on succession: 'You ain't seen nothin' yet' " by Steve [...]

  "Costco Same-Store Sales Up 3% in October - Beats Street" at Reuters. "Sales at stores open at least a year rose 3 percent in the four-week period ended Nov. 3, including the impact of fuel sales and foreign exchange.  On that basis, analysts expected same-store sales to rise 2.6 percent for the month of October, according to Thomson Reuters data."  Read more   "Costco Reports October Sales Results" (Company Release) "Costco today reported net sales of $8.15 billion for the month of October, the four weeks ended November 3, 2013, an increase of six percent from $7.66 billion during [...]

  "Survey: Six fewer days between Thanksgiving & Christmas could cost retailers $1.5 billion" by Amrita Jayakumar at Washington Post.  "There are six fewer days between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, the shortest holiday season in more than a decade.  That could cost retailers $1.5 billion in lost sales, according to a report released Tuesday, in another signal of the high stakes for stores the holiday season.  That is one reason “holiday creep” started earlier this year, analysts said."  Read more   "How Walmart Brought Low-Cost LEDs To The Mass Market" by Peter Kelly-Detwiler at Forbes. "I asked John Prince, [...]