Home Depot is acquiring specialty distributor SRS for $18.25 billion in huge bet on growing pro sales at CNBC. "The acquisition is the largest in Home Depot’s history...CEO Ted Decker...said the deal increases Home Depot’s total addressable market by $50 billion. SRS Distribution sells supplies to professionals in the landscaping, pool and roofing businesses...has approximately 11,000 employees and 760 branches across 47 states. It also has a fleet of 4,000 delivery trucks and a dedicated salesforce that caters to the home pros, Decker said." Read more   Walgreens Boots Alliance Q2 sales increased 6.3 percent year-over-year to $37.1 billion Press [...]

  Visa, Mastercard agree to lower credit-card fees in landmark merchant settlement at MarketWatch. "Through the blockbuster agreement, which merchants say is one of the largest in U.S. antitrust history, Visa and Mastercard will lower published credit-card interchange fees by four basis points in the U.S. for at least three years. The companies also won’t raise interchange fees for five years above the rates that were in place at the end of 2023." Read more | Press release   Amazon launches same-day prescription delivery in New York and Los Angeles at CNBC. "San Bernardino, Riverside and Anaheim, which are all [...]

  Dick's Sporting Goods Q4 comp sales +2.8% (vs. +0.8% expected) / Largest sales quarter in company history Press release   ...Dick’s Sporting Goods soars past holiday quarter estimates, raises dividend 10% at CNBC. "For fiscal 2024, Dick’s is expecting earnings per share to be between $12.85 and $13.25, compared with estimates of $12.90, according to LSEG...expects same store sales to rise by 1% to 2%." Read more   Amazon plans ‘Big Spring Sale’ that’s not just for Prime members starting March 20 at CNBC. "...the “Big Spring Sale,” will run for six days starting March 20, in North America. [...]

  Inside the organized crime rings plaguing retailers including Ulta, T.J. Maxx and Walgreens at CNBC. "These organized theft groups don’t typically carry out the splashy “smash and grab” robberies seen in viral videos. Instead, they pilfer goods quickly, quietly and efficiently...CNBC has spent about eight months embedding with various law enforcement agencies and investigating theft groups to understand what organized retail crime looks like from the ground." Read more   ....Ulta CEO says e-commerce sites can do more to stop the sale of stolen goods "We shouldn’t have an environment where it’s possible to steal from one retailer and [...]

  Inside the organized crime rings plaguing retailers including Ulta, T.J. Maxx and Walgreens at CNBC. "These organized theft groups don’t typically carry out the splashy “smash and grab” robberies seen in viral videos. Instead, they pilfer goods quickly, quietly and efficiently...CNBC has spent about eight months embedding with various law enforcement agencies and investigating theft groups to understand what organized retail crime looks like from the ground." Read more   ....Ulta CEO says e-commerce sites can do more to stop the sale of stolen goods "We shouldn’t have an environment where it’s possible to steal from one retailer and [...]

  Kroger Q4 identical sales (ex-gas) down 0.8% Press release   BJ's Wholesale Q4 comps up 0.5% (ex-gas) Press release   ...BJ's to enter 21st state @ KY   Newsweek: America's Greatest Workplaces for Women 2024 (Home Depot, Wegmans, Bath & Body Works...) "These 1,000 U.S.-based companies ranked highest when evaluated on metrics including compensation, work-life balance and proactive management on diversity." List   Duluth Trading Q4 net sales up 1.6% / Retail store net sales decreased by 12.2% Press release   Temu’s Push Into America Pays Off Big Time for Meta and Google at WSJ. "Temu, spent nearly $2 billion on advertisements [...]

  Target Q4 comp sales down 4.4% Press release   ...Target is launching a paid membership program, Target Circle 360 at CNBC. "...will include unlimited free same-day delivery for orders over $35 in as little as one hour with no delivery fees and two free-day shipping, along with other perks. The paid membership tier will launch in early April and cost $49 per year, said Cara Sylvester, Target’s chief guest experience officer." Read more   ...Target shares pop as retailer boosts profits, despite lackluster sales forecast at CNBC. "In an interview Tuesday with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” CEO Brian Cornell said [...]