US consumer spending sinks by record 13.6% in face of virus at AP. "Even with employers cutting millions of jobs, personal incomes soared 10.5% in April, reflecting billions of dollars in support through government payments in the form of unemployment aid and stimulus checks." Read more   Costco Q3 comp sales +4.8% / +7.8% excluding gas & f/x Press release   Amazon expands use of SNAP benefits for online grocery to 11 more states at TechCrunch. "With these additions, Amazon customers on public assistance can shop online for groceries across a total of 25 U.S. states plus Washington, D.C. [...]

  Dollar General Q1 comp sales +21.7% (vs. +7.9% estimate) "Net sales increased 27.6%...Gross profit as a percentage of net sales was 30.7% in the first quarter of 2020 compared to 30.2% in the first quarter of 2019...Operating profit for the first quarter of 2020 increased 69.2%." Press release   ...So far in Q2, Dollar General comps are up 22%   Dollar Tree Q1 Enterprise comp sales +7.0%. By segment: Family Dollar +15.5% / Dollar Tree -0.9% "Gross profit increased 3.9% to $1.79 billion in the quarter compared to the prior year’s first quarter. As a percentage of net sales, [...]

  Walmart announces a strategic partnership with fashion resale marketplace thredUP at TechCrunch. "...over 750,000 items from thredUP will be available on walmart.com/thredup, starting today. Notably, only clothing items and shoes marked as “new” or “like new” will be listed, though accessories and handbags marked as “gently used” will also be available..." Read more   Tractor Supply updates Q2 outlook: expects comp sales growth of 20% to 25% Press release   Tuesday Morning declares bankruptcy, to close 33% (230 of its 687 total) of its stores at MarketWatch. Read more   Amazon in Advanced Talks to Buy Self-Driving-Car Tech Company Zoox [...]

  Target saw strength in April ‘across our entire portfolio,’ CEO Brian Cornell says at CNBC. "While business was “normal” in February, sales growth accelerated by 16.5% in April, Cornell explained. Electronic sales were up 45%, food and beverage climbed 20%, household essentials also rose 20% and kitchen sales improved by 25% in the month of April, he said." Read more/Video   Alibaba revenue, profit beat as online sales surge during lockdown at Reuters. "Sales from the company’s core commerce business rose nearly 19% to 93.87 billion yuan ($13.16 billion) in the fourth quarter and revenue at its cloud computing [...]

  Amazon reportedly delays Prime Day sales event until September at CNBC. "The company this week decided it would delay the two-day summer event, which is typically held in July, according to the Journal...Representatives from Amazon declined to comment on the news." Read more | WSJ subs.   ...Last week, Amazon began allowing its third-party sellers of items unrelated to the coronavirus to ship inventory to its warehouses without caps on how much inventory they send, according to one of the people. WSJ subs.   Best Buy Q1 domestic comp sales down 5.7% "Domestic online revenue of $3.34 billion increased [...]

  Target Q1 comp sales +10.8% (store comp sales +0.9% / digital +141%) Press release   ...Reuters: Target's coronavirus-led online sales surge comes at heavy costs "Cornell said he expects demand for non-staple items like beauty products, home goods and clothes to continue into the current quarter." Read more   ...Fox Business: Target's profit sinks 64% as costs soar amid pandemic Read more   Lowe's Q1 U.S. comp sales +12.3% Press release   ...Lowes jumps to number one in radio spots last week at Radio Ink. "After logging in a 10th place finish on the Media Monitors chart two weeks [...]

  Walmart U.S. Q1: comp sales +10.0% / ecom +74%   Sam's Club Q1: comp sales +12.0% / ecom +40% Press release   ...CNBC: Walmart earnings soar as e-commerce sales jump, shoppers flock to stores “The second quarter has started off pretty well as we continue to see the stimulus money come in for consumers,” (CFO Biggs) added...Total revenues grew by 8.6% to $134.62 billion from $123.9 billion a year earlier, exceeding Wall Street’s expectations of $132.80 billion." Read more   Home Depot U.S. comp sales +7.5% Press release   ...Fox Business: Home Depot hit with $850M coronavirus-related charge "Home [...]

  Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine shows promise in early study, shares soar at Reuters. "Moderna said on Monday its experimental COVID-19 vaccine showed promise in a small early-stage trial, with the vaccine producing virus-neutralizing antibodies similar to that found in recovered patients, sending shares soaring 25%." Read more   Homebuilder sentiment bounces back in May, after record plunge in April at CNBC. "Confidence in the market for single-family, newly built homes rose 7 points to 37 in May, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. Anything above 50 is considered positive, so sentiment remains in negative [...]