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	<title>Stock Blog Hub &#187; Discount Variety Stores</title>
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		<title>(COST) Retail Industry Stock Outlook &#8211; April 2012 &#8211; Industry Outlook</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/04/16/cost-retail-industry-stock-outlook-april-2012-industry-outlook-2/98465</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/04/16/cost-retail-industry-stock-outlook-april-2012-industry-outlook-2/98465#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 16 Apr 2012 18:18:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BBY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Best Buy Company Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CAB]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cabela's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gap Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GPS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[J. C. Penney Company Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[JCP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[JWN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kohl's Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KSS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Limited Brands Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LTD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Macy's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nordstrom Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ross Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ROST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=98465</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Right-sizing inventories and enhancing efficiencies through greater use of technology were the key agenda items on retailers’ to-do lists most of last year. Progress on those fronts has paved the way for the retailers to enter fiscal 2012 with a more optimistic outlook. So far this year, the broader markets have showcased signs of a better pace of recovery and have thus infused hopes of a better economic scenario going forward. One might debate or disagree with this statement, but markets’ significant recovery is reflected through the benchmarks’ record-setting gains in the first quarter. The Dow and S&#38;P 500 scored gains of 8.1% and 12.0%, respectively, in the first quarter, their biggest first-quarter gains since 1998. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq increased 18.7% in the same period, enjoying its best-first-quarterly performance since ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/04/16/cost-retail-industry-stock-outlook-april-2012-industry-outlook-2/98465/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(COST) Retail Industry Stock Outlook &#8211; April 2012 &#8211; Industry Outlook</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/04/12/cost-retail-industry-stock-outlook-april-2012-industry-outlook/98387</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/04/12/cost-retail-industry-stock-outlook-april-2012-industry-outlook/98387#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:23:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BBY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Best Buy Company Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CAB]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cabela's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gap Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GPS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[J. C. Penney Company Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[JCP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[JWN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kohl's Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KSS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Limited Brands Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LTD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Macy's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nordstrom Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ross Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ROST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=98387</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Right-sizing inventories and enhancing efficiencies through greater use of technology were the key agenda items on retailers’ to-do lists most of last year. Progress on those fronts has paved the way for the retailers to enter fiscal 2012 with a more optimistic outlook. So far this year, the broader markets have showcased signs of a better pace of recovery and have thus infused hopes of a better economic scenario going forward. One might debate or disagree with this statement, but markets’ significant recovery is reflected through the benchmarks’ record-setting gains in the first quarter. The Dow and S&#38;P 500 scored gains of 8.1% and 12.0%, respectively, in the first quarter, their biggest first-quarter gains since 1998. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq increased 18.7% in the same period, enjoying its best-first-quarterly performance since ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/04/12/cost-retail-industry-stock-outlook-april-2012-industry-outlook/98387/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Walmart Helps People Eat Healthy</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/02/13/wmt-walmart-helps-people-eat-healthy/91490</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/02/13/wmt-walmart-helps-people-eat-healthy/91490#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 14 Feb 2012 05:24:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[General Mills Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GIS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kroger Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=91490</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As a part of the initiative to build a healthy America, retail-major Walmart Stores (WMT) has decided to label the foods that meet its health standards. So Americans have an easier way of finding the healthy foods, as Walmart will label those foods with a bright green label that reads: ‘Great for You.’ Walmart’s decision to label its foods follows the company’s announcement of trying to look for ways to improve the nutritional value of the food it sells. The company also said it wanted to make its healthy foods more easily available by making them less expensive. Walmart management has revealed that during the initial phase, it’s own Great Value and Marketside food items along with fresh and packaged fruits and vegetables sold at its stores, will be tagged ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2012/02/13/wmt-walmart-helps-people-eat-healthy/91490/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(COST) Costco Wholesale Sustains Sales Momentum</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/21/cost-costco-wholesale-sustains-sales-momentum/87997</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/21/cost-costco-wholesale-sustains-sales-momentum/87997#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:46:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=87997</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST), one of the leading U.S. warehouse club operators, recently posted healthy sales data for the four-week period ended November 27, 2011. The company has been able to maintain its sales momentum. After a 9% increase in October 2011, Costco’s comparable-store sales for the month of November climbed an equal percentage, reflecting comparable sales growth of 9% both at its U.S. locations and international divisions. For the thirteen-week period ended November 27, 2011, the company registered comparable-store sales growth of 10%, with U.S. and international sales also increasing by 10%. Excluding the effects of higher gasoline prices and foreign currencies fluctuation, Costco’s comparable-store sales for November climbed 7%, with U.S. and international comparable sales increasing 6% and 11%, respectively. For the thirteen-week period, the company registered comparable-store sales ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/21/cost-costco-wholesale-sustains-sales-momentum/87997/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Walmart Settles Fiduciary Lawsuit</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/09/wmt-walmart-settles-fiduciary-lawsuit/88160</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/09/wmt-walmart-settles-fiduciary-lawsuit/88160#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 09 Dec 2011 17:38:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BAC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bank of America Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=88160</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Walmart Stores (WMT) settled a long-running class-action lawsuit alleging that the retail giant had breached the retirement benefits of its 2 million past and present workers. Merrill Lynch, a unit of Bank of America Corporation (BAC), was also involved in the lawsuit as it acted as retirement plan administrator to the world’s largest private employer, Walmart. The duo agreed to pay a total of $13.5 million to settle the matter, and also agreed to remove mutual funds that charge high fees and provide more financial education to employees. However, Walmart employees need to hold on before cheering the news as they would not get the $13.5 million directly. The settlement amount will be used in reducing the future 401(k) plan fees. As for the lawyers, they would get to enjoy ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/09/wmt-walmart-settles-fiduciary-lawsuit/88160/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(BIG) Big Lots 2011 Third Quarter Earnings Preview</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/01/big-big-lots-2011-third-quarter-earnings-preview/87841</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/01/big-big-lots-2011-third-quarter-earnings-preview/87841#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Dec 2011 15:07:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BIG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Big Lots Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=87841</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Big Lots Inc. (BIG), a broad line closeout retailer in the United States, is slated to report its third-quarter 2011 financial results before the opening bell on Friday, December 2, 2011. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter is 10 cents a share. For the quarter to be reported, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is $1,120 million. Second-Quarter 2011, a Synopsis On August 25, 2011, Big Lots posted better-than-expected second-quarter 2011 results. The quarterly earnings of 52 cents a share came ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 45 cents, and increased 8.3% from 48 cents earned in the prior-year quarter. However, on a reported basis, including one time items, earnings came in at 50 cents a share. Total revenue for the quarter inched up 2.2% to $1,167.1 ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/12/01/big-big-lots-2011-third-quarter-earnings-preview/87841/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Walmart and Amazon.com Tame Packaging Rage</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/11/30/wmt-walmart-and-amazon-com-tame-packaging-rage/87741</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/11/30/wmt-walmart-and-amazon-com-tame-packaging-rage/87741#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 30 Nov 2011 18:54:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Amazon.com Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[AMZN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Procter & Gamble Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The Home Depot Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=87741</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Customers buying goods from Walmart Inc. (WMT) can heave a sigh of relief as the world’s biggest retailer teams up with online giant Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) to eliminate cumbersome packaging by manufacturers. The two retail giants are also pushing other biggies like Procter &#38; Gamble Company (PG) to design user-friendly packaging materials and do away with nearly impenetrable plastic packaging, known as clamshells. These clamshell packages use excessive amounts of harmful plastic such as polyvinyl chloride. In order to make the packages tamper-resistant and also enable adequate display of the contents, manufacturers are often driven to packages that are difficult to open and come with excess packing materials, wire ties and plastic bindings. Cumbersome packaging has been a problem for some time, with both retailers and manufacturers receiving complaints from ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/11/30/wmt-walmart-and-amazon-com-tame-packaging-rage/87741/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(TGT) Amazon.com Will Win This Holiday Gift Season</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/11/28/tgt-amazon-com-will-win-this-holiday-gift-season/87540</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/11/28/tgt-amazon-com-will-win-this-holiday-gift-season/87540#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 16:35:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[AAPL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Amazon.com Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[AMZN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Apple Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BBY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Best Buy Company Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EBAY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[eBay Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gap Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GPS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[J. C. Penney Company Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[JCP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kohl's Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KSS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Macy's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=87540</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[With Thanksgiving drawing to a close and Black Friday shopping gathering steam, this is clearly a retail weekend. Brick-and-mortar outlets, such as Target Corp (TGT), BestBuy Inc (BBY), Macy’s Inc. (M) and Kohl’s Corp (KSS) opened their stores at midnight yesterday, vying with each other to catch the first shoppers. Shoppers, too, have been lining up to bust the doors for the best of the selection and deals. While consumer dollars will no doubt pour in, this year is different from others. Mainly because a number of traditional retailers, such as Gap Inc. (GPS) and J.C. Penney Company (JCP) have not been doing so well and may not have promo offers available for long. Consumers on their part are also more cautious and have started comparing the offline shopping experience ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/11/28/tgt-amazon-com-will-win-this-holiday-gift-season/87540/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Wal-Mart Stores Reopens Stores in China</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/10/26/wmt-wal-mart-stores-reopens-stores-in-china/85859</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/10/26/wmt-wal-mart-stores-reopens-stores-in-china/85859#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 26 Oct 2011 13:46:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CEO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CNOOC Limited]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The Cooper Companies Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=85859</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) has reopened 13 stores in southwest China, which were ordered to shut down two weeks before by the municipal government of China. The municipal government of Chongqing in southwestern China had accused Wal-Mart of selling substandard food and thus fined the company with $420,000 and ordered to close 13 Wal-Mart stores for 15 days. In addition, 37 Wal-Mart employees were detained in Chongqing over mislabeling ordinary pork as organic. In response to it, Wal-Mart used the two-week closure to provide 30,000 hours of training to its employees to comply with Chongqing&#8217;s laws and regulations. The company has created food inspection labs at Chongqing stores to improve food management. Besides, Wal-Mart increased efforts to improve operations and reviewed its management procedures across China. According to ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/10/26/wmt-wal-mart-stores-reopens-stores-in-china/85859/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Wal-Mart Stores Close in China</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/10/13/wmt-wal-mart-stores-close-in-china/84927</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/10/13/wmt-wal-mart-stores-close-in-china/84927#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 13 Oct 2011 16:33:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CEO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CNOOC Limited]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The Cooper Companies Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=84927</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) has agreed to stop operations at 13 stores in southwest China, following the allegations of mislabeling ordinary pork as organic. The municipal government of Chongqing in southwestern China has accused Wal-Mart of selling substandard food and thus fined the company with $420,000 and ordered to close 13 Wal-Mart stores for 15 days. In addition, many of its store managers were detained in Chongqing. According to many analysts, large retailers in China have been penalized before, for mislabeling food products, particularly for selling expired items. Since 2006, Wal-Mart has been fined 21 times in Chongqing for deceptive advertising or for selling expired food. Also in January, Wal-Mart and Carrefour were fined for charging extra on promotional items. Although Chinese government has become stricter in maintaining ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/10/13/wmt-wal-mart-stores-close-in-china/84927/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Wal-Mart Stores to Install Solar Projects</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/24/wmt-wal-mart-stores-to-install-solar-projects/84021</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/24/wmt-wal-mart-stores-to-install-solar-projects/84021#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 24 Sep 2011 18:54:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=84021</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As committed to generate renewable energy in California, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) planned to install solar-power panels in more than 60 stores in California, which means that 75% of the stores will have solar power. Further, the state’s largest solar installer – SolarCity will own, install and maintain the new solar power systems for Wal-Mart. At present, SolarCity will install rooftop panels on about 65 California stores. Through this solar program, Wal-Mart has cut down its energy expenses by more than a million dollars, which will also come as a benefit to the customers. In addition, Wal-Mart’s first solar project had created more than 500 new full-time jobs. Once the solar projects are completed, Wal-Mart&#8217;s solar panel is expected to generate up to 70 million kilowatt hours of clean, renewable ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/24/wmt-wal-mart-stores-to-install-solar-projects/84021/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(WMT) Walmart Stores Announces Women-Centered Programs</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/20/wmt-walmart-stores-announces-women-centered-programs/83165</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/20/wmt-walmart-stores-announces-women-centered-programs/83165#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 20 Sep 2011 20:32:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=83165</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Walmart Stores Inc. (WMT), the world’s leading grocery retailer, has a basket of plans aimed at women across the globe for next five years. The company has announced plans to invest in goods and services from U.S. businesses owned by women and would also train women workers across the globe to boost their productivity. Walmart plans to spend $20 billion in products from women-owned businesses in the United States. It averages $4 billion per year, versus $2.5 billion it currently spends. The company plans to double the merchandise it buys from women-owned businesses globally by 2016. The program also plans to train 60,000 women factory workers, supplying products to Walmart and other merchants. Additionally, the company will provide training on life skills, which range from punctuality to financial literacy,  to ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/20/wmt-walmart-stores-announces-women-centered-programs/83165/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(BJ) BJ’s Wholesale Club Opens in Northborough, Massachusetts</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/19/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-opens-in-northborough-massachusetts/83256</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/19/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-opens-in-northborough-massachusetts/83256#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 19 Sep 2011 20:43:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=83256</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc. (BJ), in an attempt to expand its operational roots, is all set to serve the residents of Northborough, Massachusetts by opening a new store and providing them an avenue to generate savings on groceries and general merchandise. The new 120,000-square-foot club in Northborough replaces the BJ&#8217;s 23-year-old wholesale club in Westborough, Massachusetts. Apart from selling home-grown produce, the company will offer premium products along with widely accepted national brands of every kind. Moreover, the residents of Northborough will get the benefit of acquiring goods at prices lower than traditional wholesalers, discount retailers, supermarkets, and specialty retailers. Earlier, BJ’s announced that majority of its shareholders approved the $2.8 billion offer of Leonard Green &#38; Partners and CVC Capital Partners for making the company private. Further, the company ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/19/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-opens-in-northborough-massachusetts/83256/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(COST) Costco Wholesale Corporation Delivers Consistent Sales Growth</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/15/cost-costco-wholesale-corporation-delivers-consistent-sales-growth/83020</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/15/cost-costco-wholesale-corporation-delivers-consistent-sales-growth/83020#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 15 Sep 2011 17:52:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=83020</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) continues to be a dominant retail wholesaler based on the breadth and quality of merchandise it has to offer. The company’s strategy to sell products at heavily discounted prices has helped it to remain on a positive growth track amid beleaguered economic conditions as cash-strapped customers continue to see it as a viable option for low-cost necessities. Having delivered consistent comparable-store sales growth, Costco is well positioned in the warehouse club industry. Costco Wholesale Corporation recently posted healthy sales data for the four-week period ended August 28, 2011. The company has been able to maintain its sales momentum. After a 10% increase in July 2011, Costco’s comparable-store sales for August rose 11%, reflecting comparable sales growth rates of 9% at its U.S. locations and 18% at its ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/15/cost-costco-wholesale-corporation-delivers-consistent-sales-growth/83020/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(TGT) Chase Track Records If You Want to Profit</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/12/tgt-chase-track-records-if-you-want-to-profit/82373</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/12/tgt-chase-track-records-if-you-want-to-profit/82373#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 12 Sep 2011 17:18:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>InvestmentU</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BDX]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Becton Dickinson Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Harleysville Group Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HCP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HCP Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HGIC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KMP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LANC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lancaster Colony Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LOW]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lowe's Companies Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T. Rowe Price Group Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TROW]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WAG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Walgreen Company]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=82373</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[by Marc Lichtenfeld, Investment U Senior Analyst Wednesday, August 31, 2011: Issue #1590 Perhaps because I have time on my side, I get excited when the market sells off like it did a few weeks ago. I know that I’ll be able to buy quality stocks at a lower price. That’s especially interesting to income investors who might be able to pick up an extra half a percentage point or so of yield with no real changes to a company’s ability to generate cash. When stocks decline, one of the first places I look is the list of S&#38;P Dividend Aristocrats. Dividend Aristocrats are stocks that are members of the S&#38;P 500 that have increased their dividends every year for the past 25 years. And their track records are welcome ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/09/12/tgt-chase-track-records-if-you-want-to-profit/82373/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(COST) Costco Sustains Sales Momentum</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/21/cost-costco-sustains-sales-momentum/80823</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/21/cost-costco-sustains-sales-momentum/80823#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 22 Aug 2011 01:50:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=80823</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST), one of the leading U.S. warehouse club operators, recently posted healthy sales data for the four-week period ended July 31, 2011. The company has been able to sustain its sales momentum. After a 14% increase in June 2011, Costco’s comparable-store sales for July rose 10%, reflecting a comparable sales growth of 6% at its U.S. locations and 22% at its international divisions. For the forty-eight week period ended July 31, 2011, the company registered comparable-store sales growth of 10%, with U.S. and international sales increasing 7% and 16%, respectively. The sales results include contribution from the company&#8217;s Mexican joint venture. Costco began incorporating results of its Mexican operations on a prospective basis with the commencement of its fiscal 2011 on August 30, 2010. Excluding the effects of ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/21/cost-costco-sustains-sales-momentum/80823/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(BJ) Company News for August 18, 2011 &#8211; Corporate Summary</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/18/bj-company-news-for-august-18-2011-corporate-summary/81570</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/18/bj-company-news-for-august-18-2011-corporate-summary/81570#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 18 Aug 2011 23:48:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Citi Trends]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CLF]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CTRN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Deere & Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DELL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dell Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HealthSpring Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SPLS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staples Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=81570</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[•    Deere (NYSE:DE) reported Q3 EPS of $1.69, ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimates of $1.68 per share. Revenues for the quarter rose 24.1% year-over-year to $7.72 billion•    Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) posted second quarter 2012 EPS of 54 cents, easily beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 49 cents. Revenues for the second quarter were $15.7 billion, up 1.0% from $15.5 billion reported in the year-ago quarter •    Target (NYSE:TGT) reported Q2 EPS of $1.03, above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.97. Revenues for the quarter rose to 11.5% year-over-year to $16.24 billion •    Staples (NASDAQ:SPLS) posted Q2 EPS of $0.22, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.19 per share. Revenues for the quarter rose 5.2% year-over-year to $5.82 billion •    BJ&#8217;s Wholesale (NYSE:BJ) reported Q2 EPS of $0.84, ahead of ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/18/bj-company-news-for-august-18-2011-corporate-summary/81570/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(FRED) Stock Market News for August 15, 2011 &#8211; Market News</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/16/fred-stock-market-news-for-august-15-2011-market-news/81327</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/16/fred-stock-market-news-for-august-15-2011-market-news/81327#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2011 17:59:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FRED]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fred's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[J. C. Penney Company Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[JCP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Macy's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PriceSmart Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PSMT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The TJX Companies Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TJX]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=81327</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[An erratic period for the markets finally came to a close with mild gains on Friday as the retail sales report upped the mood. This was the first time since early July that the Dow and the S&#38;P 500 registered two consecutive days of gains. However, the magnitude of losses that the benchmarks had suffered could not be entirely washed out and all the benchmarks were down less than 2% for the week. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) recorded its fifth-straight day of triple-digit movement for the first time since January last year. The Dow was up 125 points or 1.1% to close the day at 11,269.02. The Standard &#38; Poor 500 (S&#38;P 500) gained 0.5% and settled at 1,178.81. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.6% and finished ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/16/fred-stock-market-news-for-august-15-2011-market-news/81327/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
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		<title>(WMT) U.S. Growth Forecast Concerns Take Center Stage</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/16/wmt-u-s-growth-forecast-concerns-take-center-stage/81401</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/16/wmt-u-s-growth-forecast-concerns-take-center-stage/81401#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2011 16:59:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[A]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Agilent Technologies Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DELL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dell Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The Home Depot Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=81401</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Stocks will likely be unable to sustain the three-day rally of sorts as the reality of economic growth uncertainty comes back to center stage. We have a number of reports out this morning that highlight the lack of economic growth, not just here in the U.S., but also in Europe. We have known about Europe&#8217;s debt problems for awhile, but this morning brought in a weaker-than-expected report about EuroZone&#8217;s GDP growth in the second quarter. German economic growth was barely in the positive column, while France had no growth at all. The sharp slowdown from the first quarter&#8217;s growth pace raises questions about the interest rate hikes implemented by the European Central Bank recently. Lack of growth makes it difficult for European leaders to tackle the common market&#8217;s escalating debt ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/08/16/wmt-u-s-growth-forecast-concerns-take-center-stage/81401/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>(FDO) Family Dollar Stores 2011 Third Quarter Earnings Scorecard</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/11/fdo-family-dollar-stores-2011-third-quarter-earnings-scorecard/78611</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/11/fdo-family-dollar-stores-2011-third-quarter-earnings-scorecard/78611#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jul 2011 15:52:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dollar General Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=78611</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc. (FDO), the operator of self-service retail discount store chains, recently posted third-quarter 2011 results. Street analysts had a week to ponder on the news. In the subsequent paragraphs, we will cover the recent earnings announcement, subsequent analysts’ estimate revisions as well as the Zacks Rank and long-term recommendation on the stock. Earnings Report Review Family dollar’s quarterly earnings of 91 cents a share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 95 cents, but jumped 18.2% from 77 cents earned in the prior-year quarter due to healthy sales witnessed in the Consumable and Home Products categories. Management now expects fourth-quarter 2011 earnings between 62 cents and 70 cents, and fiscal 2011 earnings between $3.08 and $3.16. The company posted an increase of 7.8% in revenue to $2,153.4 million ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/11/fdo-family-dollar-stores-2011-third-quarter-earnings-scorecard/78611/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Wal-Mart Offers Jobs in Wichita</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/06/wmt-wal-mart-offers-jobs-in-wichita/78459</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/06/wmt-wal-mart-offers-jobs-in-wichita/78459#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 06 Jul 2011 19:38:03 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=78459</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT) has announced to create 300 jobs for its five Walmart Neighborhood Markets stores in Wichita. Walmart stated that they have started accepting applications from June 20 for both full-time and part-time positions and will employ associates for supervisory and other positions. Additionally, one of the hiring centers in Wichita will continue accepting applications from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays and Fridays, and from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesdays through Thursdays. The interested applicants can apply for the required positions at the center or can also apply online at http://walmartstores.com/Careers. The Walmart Market will thus bring in new job opportunities in Wichita as the store will offer both full- and part-time positions. Besides, the eligible full-time and part-time associates will get ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/06/wmt-wal-mart-offers-jobs-in-wichita/78459/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Wal-Mart Wants Bigger Brazil Market</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/01/wmt-wal-mart-wants-bigger-brazil-market/78227</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/01/wmt-wal-mart-wants-bigger-brazil-market/78227#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 01 Jul 2011 20:32:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ca Technologies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CBD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Companhia Brasileira de Distribuicao]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=78227</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the midst of a takeover fight between rival retail chains, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) states its desire to buy Carrefour SA’s (CA) operations in the booming Brazilian market. Carrefour, a giant French retailer, had been experiencing a rough patch for last few years. To overcome such issues, it had been trying to sell its assets. On June 28, Carrefour said that it had received an offer to merge its Brazilian operations with those of Companhia Brasileira de Distribuição (CBD), the leader in the Brazilian retail world. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer kept a close watch on the progress of events between CBD and Carrefour. Under the $2.9 billion deal, CBD, Pão de Açúcar and Carrefour’s Brazilian arm will merge into Gama, a holding company. However, Casino, Carrefour’s arch rival, who ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/07/01/wmt-wal-mart-wants-bigger-brazil-market/78227/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>(BJ) BJ’s Wholesale Club Approves Buyout Offer</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/30/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-approves-buyout-offer/78006</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/30/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-approves-buyout-offer/78006#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 30 Jun 2011 21:17:33 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=78006</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[After keeping the market guessing about the future prospects of the company, BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc. (BJ) recently announced that its board of directors has approved the $2.8 billion buyout offer of Leonard Green &#38; Partners and CVC Capital Partners. Going with the approval, BJ’s entered into conformity regarding the buyout offer of Leonard Green &#38; Partners and CVC Capital Partners. Leonard Green had around 9.5% stake in the company and the acquisition of BJ’s will be the latest in its string of buyouts. The 2.8 billion cash deal offers BJ’s shareholders $51.25 for each share of BJ’s common stock and is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2011. Further, the deal requires the approval of the regulator and its shareholders coupled with the customary closing conditions. ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/30/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-approves-buyout-offer/78006/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(FDO) Family Dollar Stores Misses &#8211; Earnings Up</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/29/fdo-family-dollar-stores-misses-earnings-up/77910</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/29/fdo-family-dollar-stores-misses-earnings-up/77910#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 29 Jun 2011 20:51:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dollar General Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=77910</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc. (FDO) recently posted third-quarter 2011 results. The quarterly earnings of 91 cents a share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 95 cents, but jumped 18.2% from 77 cents earned in the prior-year quarter due to healthy sales witnessed in the Consumable and Home Products categories. However, the shares of Family Dollar dropped 3.3% or $1.76 to $51.26 in pre-market trading. The company had earlier guided earnings in the range of 92 cents to 97 cents for the quarter under review. Management now expects fourth-quarter 2011 earnings between 62 cents and 70 cents, and fiscal 2011 earnings between $3.08 and $3.16. The current Zacks Consensus Estimates for the fourth quarter and fiscal 2011 are 65 cents and $3.15 per share. We observe that Family Dollar’s strategic initiatives ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/29/fdo-family-dollar-stores-misses-earnings-up/77910/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(FDO) Family Dollar Stores 2011 Third Quarter Earnings Preview</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/29/fdo-family-dollar-stores-2011-third-quarter-earnings-preview/77571</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/29/fdo-family-dollar-stores-2011-third-quarter-earnings-preview/77571#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 29 Jun 2011 17:03:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dollar General Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=77571</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc. (FDO), the operator of the self-service retail discount store chain, is slated to report its third-quarter 2011 financial results on Wednesday, June 29, 2011. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter is 94 cents a share and the Zacks Consensus Revenue Estimate is $2,164 million. Second-Quarter 2011, a Synopsis Family Dollar’s quarterly earnings of 98 cents per share came in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate, but jumped 21% from 81 cents earned in the prior-year quarter due to healthy sales witnessed in the Consumable and Seasonal categories. Family Dollar posted an increase of 8.3% in revenue to $2,263.2 million from the prior-year quarter, reflecting sales growth across Consumables categories (up 10.7%), Seasonal and Electronics (up 8%), Home Products (up 3%), and Apparel and Accessories ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/29/fdo-family-dollar-stores-2011-third-quarter-earnings-preview/77571/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Sleepers in the E-Commerce Boom</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/28/wmt-sleepers-in-the-e-commerce-boom/77686</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/28/wmt-sleepers-in-the-e-commerce-boom/77686#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 28 Jun 2011 15:56:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>InvestmentU</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Amazon.com Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[AMZN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDX]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FedEx Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mastercard Incorporated]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[United Parcel Service Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UPS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[V]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Visa Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=77686</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[by Justin Dove, Investment U Research Tuesday, June 28, 2011 E-commerce is one of the few areas of constant growth in the United States these days. It’s the reason Wal-Mart (Nasdaq: WMT) wants to unseat Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) as the leader in online retail sales. Check out what the first-quarter 2011 comScore report had to say about online retail sales: Online retail sales totaled $38 billion in the first quarter of 2011. This marks a 12 percent rise over the first quarter of 2010. It is the sixth straight quarter with positive growth over the previous year and the second consecutive quarter with double-digit growth over the previous year. The number of online buyers increased by seven percent. The transactions per buyer increased by nine percent. The dollars per transaction ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/28/wmt-sleepers-in-the-e-commerce-boom/77686/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Walmart to Create Jobs in Africa</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/27/wmt-walmart-to-create-jobs-in-africa/77554</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/27/wmt-walmart-to-create-jobs-in-africa/77554#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 27 Jun 2011 15:16:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=77554</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Following the takeover of South Africa-based retailer Massmart Holdings Ltd., the retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) has announced to create 15,000 jobs in South Africa within the next five years. Besides, Walmart will expand its procurement of food and consumer goods from local suppliers by an additional $8.74 billion (60 billion rand) after its tie-up with Massmart. Additionally, Walmart will open new stores over that period. Walmart acquired 51% stake of Massmart for $2.4 billion (16.5 billion rand) on June 20 for gaining  access to 50 million South African consumers. Through this deal, Massmart will also get the benefit to leverage Walmart&#8217;s global expertise in working directly with the local farmers for encouraging safe and high-quality cultivation. In another news flow, Walmart has signed an agreement with its competitor ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/27/wmt-walmart-to-create-jobs-in-africa/77554/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Walmart Stores Re-zones in Milwaukee</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/26/wmt-walmart-stores-re-zones-in-milwaukee/77466</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/26/wmt-walmart-stores-re-zones-in-milwaukee/77466#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 26 Jun 2011 17:18:33 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=77466</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) has received re-zoning approval from the Village Board to construct a supermarket store on the former U.S. Bowling Congress office across Southridge Mall in Greendale. Walmart plans to dismantle the former U.S. Bowling Congress office and build a 92,380-square-foot supermarket and discount store in the Milwaukee area, which will be valued at $10 million. Gatlin Development Co. will build the store and lease it to Walmart. The construction on the Walmart store will probably begin in late summer. Further, the store will include a pharmacy and grocery with two out-lots for future developments. Besides this store, Gatlin also plans to develop two smaller, separate retail buildings, with the Walmart supermarket further west of the street. Apart from Greendale, Walmart has also won zoning approval ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/26/wmt-walmart-stores-re-zones-in-milwaukee/77466/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) First Quarter GDP Revised Up to 1.9% &#8211; Part 2</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/24/wmt-first-quarter-gdp-revised-up-to-1-9-part-2/77421</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/24/wmt-first-quarter-gdp-revised-up-to-1-9-part-2/77421#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jun 2011 22:06:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=77421</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Part 1: http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/24/pce-first-quarter-gdp-revised-up-to-1-9/77415 Second Quarter Projection Second quarter growth looks like it will probably come in close to the 1.9% level of the first quarter. That means that second-half growth will have to average 3.7% to get the whole year to 2.8%. We will need a lot of strength from net exports in the second half to get us there. However, if we can start to replace imported oil with domestically produced energy we could substantially boost the overall rate of economic growth. While ultimately we would want to do that with renewable sources, such as wind and solar, they mostly produce electricity, and oil is mostly used as a transportation fuel. We do, however, have very abundant supplies of natural gas, and the technology for using natural gas as ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/24/wmt-first-quarter-gdp-revised-up-to-1-9-part-2/77421/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) U.S. Initial Jobless Claims Up Again</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/23/wmt-u-s-initial-jobless-claims-up-again/77283</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/23/wmt-u-s-initial-jobless-claims-up-again/77283#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 23 Jun 2011 19:35:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Employment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kroger Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=77283</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance rose by 9,000 last week to 429,000. This was worse than the expected level of 413,000. Last week’s numbers were revised up by 6,000, so one could see it as a 15,000 increase. The trend in initial claims had been downward, though there were some bumps along the way. Last month, they have started to shoot back up again. That is a very worrisome trend. This week brought more damage. This is the 11th straight week we have been above the 400,000 level. Being below it, as we were in March probably signaled the start of much more robust job growth. Now it looks like we are back to the “trading range” that initial claims were in for almost all of 2010. Initial jobless claims ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/23/wmt-u-s-initial-jobless-claims-up-again/77283/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Walmart Stores Shrinks for Big Gain</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/21/wmt-walmart-stores-shrinks-for-big-gain/76841</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/21/wmt-walmart-stores-shrinks-for-big-gain/76841#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 21 Jun 2011 18:59:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=76841</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) buys the idea “small is profitable” and gears up for opening mid-sized Walmart Market stores immediately. Management has also announced that the company plans to open 90 to 100 stores in the year ending in January and 300 by fiscal 2013, up from 185 presently. These mid-sized Neighborhood markets are more like traditional grocery stores, which enjoys same returns as the supercenters and entails lesser hassles in being approved and constructed. Wal-Mart is getting even smaller with Wal-Mart Express, an apt way to regain its businesses that was lost to the dollar stores. Wal-Mart, the world&#8217;s largest retailer, opened its first &#8220;Walmart Express&#8221; store in Gentry, Arkansas, about six miles from the nearest Wal-Mart supercenter, in early June. Walmart Express stores, occupying an area ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/21/wmt-walmart-stores-shrinks-for-big-gain/76841/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Initial Jobless Claims Down Slightly</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/14/wmt-initial-jobless-claims-down-slightly/75398</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/14/wmt-initial-jobless-claims-down-slightly/75398#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jun 2011 18:56:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Employment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kroger Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=75398</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance fell by 6,000 last week to 422,000. This was worse than the expected level of 413,000. The trend in initial claims had been moving downward, although with some bumps along the way. Last month, they have started to shoot back up again. This is a very worrisome trend, though we will need a few more weeks of declines to really be sure the trend is still in the right direction. Let us hope the decline continues next week. There have been several indicators lately that the recovery is losing steam, and while the direction this week was right, the level is not that encouraging. This is the 8th straight week we have been above the 400,000 level. Being below it as we were in March ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/14/wmt-initial-jobless-claims-down-slightly/75398/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(BJ) Company News for June 10, 2011 &#8211; Corporate Summary</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/14/bj-company-news-for-june-10-2011-corporate-summary-2/76077</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/14/bj-company-news-for-june-10-2011-corporate-summary-2/76077#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:07:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[3M Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Concho Resources Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CXO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DIS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EEE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Elan Corporation plc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ELN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Evergreen Energy Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hanesbrands Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HBI]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HLS Systems International Limited]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HOLI]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Macy's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MDCO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Medicines Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MMM]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nasdaq OMX Group Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NDAQ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SJM]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The J. M. Smucker Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Titan Machinery Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TITN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UBS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UBS AG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Walt Disney Company]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=76077</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[•    On Thursday, 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) said it has concluded an agreement to buy manufacturer of quick cure, aircraft sealants Advanced Chemistry &#38; Technology. The acquisition will enhance and expand 3M&#8217;s product availability in the aerospace market •    Evergreen Energy Inc. (NYSE:EEE) said it has completed the formation of its venture with Australian listed mineral resources company WPG Resources. K-Fuel is Evergreen&#8217;s coal upgrading technology •    Titan Machinery Inc. (NASDAQ:TITN) reported Q1 EPS of $0.40, ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.23 per share. Revenues grew 54.9% year-over-year to $318.2 million, easily surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $245.0 million •    The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) reported Q4 EPS of $1.00 ex-items, marginally above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.98 per share. Revenue for the quarter grew 11% ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/14/bj-company-news-for-june-10-2011-corporate-summary-2/76077/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(BJ) Company News for June 10, 2011 &#8211; Corporate Summary</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/10/bj-company-news-for-june-10-2011-corporate-summary/75980</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/10/bj-company-news-for-june-10-2011-corporate-summary/75980#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 10 Jun 2011 15:55:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[3M Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Concho Resources Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CXO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DIS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EEE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Elan Corporation plc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ELN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Evergreen Energy Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hanesbrands Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HBI]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HLS Systems International Limited]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HOLI]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Macy's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MDCO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Medicines Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MMM]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nasdaq OMX Group Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[NDAQ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SJM]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The J. M. Smucker Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Titan Machinery Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TITN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UBS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UBS AG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Walt Disney Company]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=75980</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[•    On Thursday, 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) said it has concluded an agreement to buy manufacturer of quick cure, aircraft sealants Advanced Chemistry &#38; Technology. The acquisition will enhance and expand 3M&#8217;s product availability in the aerospace market •    Evergreen Energy Inc. (NYSE:EEE) said it has completed the formation of its venture with Australian listed mineral resources company WPG Resources. K-Fuel is Evergreen&#8217;s coal upgrading technology •    Titan Machinery Inc. (NASDAQ:TITN) reported Q1 EPS of $0.40, ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.23 per share. Revenues grew 54.9% year-over-year to $318.2 million, easily surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $245.0 million •    The J. M. Smucker Company (NYSE:SJM) reported Q4 EPS of $1.00 ex-items, marginally above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.98 per share. Revenue for the quarter grew 11% ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/10/bj-company-news-for-june-10-2011-corporate-summary/75980/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(WMT) Wal-Mart 2012 First Quarter Earnings Beats Estimates</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/06/wmt-wal-mart-2012-first-quarter-earnings-beats-estimates/74258</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/06/wmt-wal-mart-2012-first-quarter-earnings-beats-estimates/74258#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jun 2011 17:23:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=74258</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) reported better-than-expected first-quarter 2012 results. The retailing giant reported quarterly earnings of 98 cents a share up by 12.6% over the prior-year earnings of 87 cents a share as well as surpassing the Zacks Consensus estimate by 2 pennies. The quarter’s earnings included a benefit of $0.01 per share related to currency translation. Revenue and Margin Details Wal-Mart’s net sales for the first quarter climbed 4.4% to $103.4 billion from $99.1 billion in the year-ago quarter. Net sales for the quarter included a currency exchange rate benefit of $1.3 billion. The expansion was primarily driven by a robust 11.5% growth in the International segment, partially offset by the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami which negatively affected sales in Japan.Sales at the Wal-Mart&#8217;s U.S. segment inched ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/06/wmt-wal-mart-2012-first-quarter-earnings-beats-estimates/74258/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(WMT) Demographics of Joblessness &#8211; Part 2</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/04/wmt-demographics-of-joblessness-part-2/75544</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/04/wmt-demographics-of-joblessness-part-2/75544#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 04 Jun 2011 18:14:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Employment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=75544</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Private Sector Results The private sector added 83,000 jobs, way down from an increase of 251,000 jobs in April (revised down from 268,000). In March, the private sector added 219,000 jobs (revised down from 231,000 and an initial read of 230,000). The private sector job growth over the last three months is certainly respectable, averaging 184,300. That’s good, but hardly great, especially coming out of a deep recession. The May number was far below the consensus expectations of 180,000 private jobs gained. The downward revisions to previous months is a big shift from what we had been seeing earlier in the year, when we were seeing very big upward revisions. That makes it likely that when the June jobs report comes out, the May numbers will be revised even lower. ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/06/04/wmt-demographics-of-joblessness-part-2/75544/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(WMT) U.S. Initial Jobless Claims Fall Again</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/28/wmt-u-s-initial-jobless-claims-fall-again/74530</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/28/wmt-u-s-initial-jobless-claims-fall-again/74530#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 28 May 2011 18:49:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Employment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kroger Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=74530</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance fell by 29,000 last week to 409,000. However, last week was revised up by 4,000, so one could see it as a 25,000 decrease. This was better than the expected level of 420,000. The trend in initial claims has been downward overall, although there have been some bumps along the way. Last month, they started to shoot back up again. That is a very worrisome trend, but this is the second week in a row of big declines (last week was down 44,000), so perhaps it was a blip, not a trend. This week repaired some more of the damage. We will need a few more weeks of declines to really be sure the trend is still in the right direction. Let us hope the ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/28/wmt-u-s-initial-jobless-claims-fall-again/74530/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(WMT) Growth Quality Revised Lower &#8211; Part 2</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/27/wmt-growth-quality-revised-lower-part-2/75026</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/27/wmt-growth-quality-revised-lower-part-2/75026#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 27 May 2011 15:06:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=75026</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[(This blog is a continuation of &#8220;Growth Quality Revised Lower.&#8221;) Structures vs. Equipment &#38; Software Non-residential or business investment can also be broken into two major parts, investment in structures, such as new office buildings and strip malls, and investment in equipment and software. Investment in structures subtracted 0.48 (0.63) points from growth in the first quarter. That is a very big negative swing from a contribution of 0.19 points in the fourth quarter. I have to say the magnitude of the drop this quarter was a bit of a surprise, but not the direction. The revised number is more like what I was expecting in the first place. Vacancy rates are still extremely high in almost all areas of the country, and in almost all major types of non-residential ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/27/wmt-growth-quality-revised-lower-part-2/75026/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(COST) Costco Posts Decent Numbers &#8211; ValuEngine Concurs and Rates Stock a Buy</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/25/cost-costco-posts-decent-numbers-valuengine-concurs-and-rates-stock-a-buy/74893</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/25/cost-costco-posts-decent-numbers-valuengine-concurs-and-rates-stock-a-buy/74893#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 26 May 2011 01:57:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>valuengine</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=74893</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Costco (COST) Posts Decent Numbers, ValuEngine Concurs and Rates Stock a Buy Costco Wholesale Corp. operates membership warehouses based on the concept that offering members very low prices on a limited selection of nationally branded and selected private label products in a wide range of merchandise categories will produce high sales volumes and rapid inventory turnover. This rapid inventory turnover enables Costco to operate profitably at significantly lower gross margins than traditional wholesalers, discount retailers and supermarkets. Costco reported earnings that rose 6% with strong same-store sales and expense controls helping to mitigate some decline in overall margins. Costco reported a profit of $324 million&#8211; 73 cents a share, up from $306 million year-over-year. Revenue increased 16% to $20.62 billion. The company beat estimates on revenues but slightly missed on earnings&#8211;which had been ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/25/cost-costco-posts-decent-numbers-valuengine-concurs-and-rates-stock-a-buy/74893/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(COST) U.S. Jobless Claims Report Much Higher Than Anticipated</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/05/cost-u-s-jobless-claims-report-much-higher-than-anticipated/73361</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/05/cost-u-s-jobless-claims-report-much-higher-than-anticipated/73361#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 05 May 2011 13:43:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Directv Group Inc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DTV]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Employment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gap Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[General Motors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GM]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GPS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Limited Brands Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LTD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Macy's Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[markets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sara Lee Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SLE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=73361</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The market is getting nervous about the economic recovery. Concerns that the first quarter softness may carry into the second quarter and beyond have been weighing on stocks lately. Economists have generally maintained their GDP growth forecasts at this stage. But softish economic readings, such as yesterday&#8217;s ISM/ADP and today&#8217;s Jobless Claims reports, increase the odds that we may start seeing those estimates start coming down in the coming days and weeks. It is with this nervous backdrop that the market is looking forward to tomorrow&#8217;s non-farm payroll report for April. In addition to some pockets of strength, particularly on the manufacturing side, the most reassuring sign on the recovery front has been the emerging signs of a labor market turnaround over the last few months. We may have to ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/05/05/cost-u-s-jobless-claims-report-much-higher-than-anticipated/73361/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(WMT) Jobless Claims Jump by 25,000</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/28/wmt-jobless-claims-jump-by-25000/72697</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/28/wmt-jobless-claims-jump-by-25000/72697#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Apr 2011 02:18:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Employment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kroger Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=72697</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance rose by 25,000 last week to 429,000. However, last week was revised up by 1,000, so one could see it as a 26,000 increase. This was worse than the expected level of 390,000. The trend in initial claims has been downward, although there have been some bumps along the way. Recently, though, they have started to trend back up again. That is a very worrisome trend. The weekly numbers, after an erratic few months, seemed to have broken decisively to the downside. This week did a lot of damage, and makes it hard to see the trend still being in the right direction. Let us hope the decline resumes next week. Like the weather, there is a trend towards warming in the spring, but that ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/28/wmt-jobless-claims-jump-by-25000/72697/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(WMT) U.S. Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance Jumps</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/14/wmt-u-s-initial-claims-for-unemployment-insurance-jumps/71579</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/14/wmt-u-s-initial-claims-for-unemployment-insurance-jumps/71579#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 14 Apr 2011 22:24:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Employment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kroger Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=71579</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance jumped by 27,000 last week to 412,000. However, last week was revised up by 3,000, so one could see it as a 30,000 increase. This was much worse than the expected level of 385,000. The trend in initial claims is downward, although there have been some bumps along the way. The weekly numbers, after an erratic few months, seem to have broken decisively to the downside. This week is a big bump. Let us hope the decline resumes next week. Like the weather, there is a trend towards warming in the spring, but that does not mean that next week will be warmer than this week, though we can be fairly sure that June will be warmer than January. We rose above the 400,000 level ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/14/wmt-u-s-initial-claims-for-unemployment-insurance-jumps/71579/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(TGT) Risk-Reward Balances Target</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/tgt-risk-reward-balances-target/71440</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/tgt-risk-reward-balances-target/71440#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 14 Apr 2011 03:01:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=71440</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Target Corporation’s (TGT) efficient marketing, multi-channel strategy, product innovation, compelling pricing strategy and new merchandise assortments, should help drive comparable-store sales and operating margins in the long term. We expect the company to gain market share, and believe that more focus on consumable items should boost sales and earnings in a sluggish consumer environment. Going forward the company will focus more on store renovations and improving store sales productivity. Target in fiscal 2011 plans to remodel nearly 380 stores, which include an expanded grocery offering, improved store layout, and enhancement of in-store shopping experience across departments, such as, beauty, home, electronics and video games, aimed at increasing traffic. Moreover, by the end of 2011, Target plans to introduce P-fresh in-store food and grocery sections in approximately 850 discount stores. Target, ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/tgt-risk-reward-balances-target/71440/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(COST) Costco Wholesale Analyst Maintains Neutral</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/cost-costco-wholesale-analyst-maintains-neutral/71469</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/cost-costco-wholesale-analyst-maintains-neutral/71469#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 14 Apr 2011 02:52:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=71469</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We are reiterating our long-term Neutral recommendation on Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) with a price target of $80.00. Moreover, Costco holds a Zacks #3 Rank, which translates into a short-term Hold rating. Costco continues to be a dominant retail wholesaler based on the breadth and quality of its merchandise. The company’s strategy to sell products at heavily discounted prices has helped it to remain on a positive growth track amid beleaguered economic conditions as cash-strapped customers continue to see Costco as a viable option for low-cost necessities. Having delivered consistent comparable-store sales growth, Costco is well positioned in the warehouse club industry. A differentiated product range enables Costco to provide an upscale shopping experience for its members, resulting in market share gains and higher sales per square foot. Moreover, the ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/cost-costco-wholesale-analyst-maintains-neutral/71469/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(BJ) BJ’s Wholesale Club Analyst Maintains Neutral on Shares</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-analyst-maintains-neutral-on-shares/71494</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-analyst-maintains-neutral-on-shares/71494#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 14 Apr 2011 02:17:03 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=71494</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We are reiterating our long-term Neutral recommendation on BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc. (BJ) with a price target of $53.00. Moreover, BJ’s Wholesale holds a Zacks #3 Rank, which translates into a short-term ‘Hold’ rating. Boasting a viable business strategy and a healthy balance sheet, BJ’s Wholesale Club offers investors one of the strongest growth stories in this space. The company expects to achieve earnings per share growth of 3.6% to 11.5% in fiscal 2011, based on net sales growth of 6.5% to 8.5% and comparable club sales growth of 2.5% to 4.5%. BJ’s as a warehouse club is uniquely positioned to drive traffic as it offers a wider assortment of brands at compelling prices by housing approximately 7,000 stock keeping units (SKUs) compared with 4,000-5,000 SKUs carried by its competitors. ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/bj-bj%e2%80%99s-wholesale-club-analyst-maintains-neutral-on-shares/71494/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(COST) Costco Wholesale Corporation Continues Sales Momentum</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/cost-costco-wholesale-corporation-continues-sales-momentum/71086</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/cost-costco-wholesale-corporation-continues-sales-momentum/71086#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:30:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=71086</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST), one of the leading U.S. warehouse club operators, recently posted healthy sales data for the five-week period ended April 3, 2011. The company sustained its sales momentum. After an 8% increase in February 2011, Costco’s comparable-store sales for March rose 13%, reflecting a comparable sales growth of 11% at its U.S. locations and 17% at its international divisions. For the thirty-one week period ended April 3, 2011, the company registered a comparable-store sales growth of 8%, with U.S. and international sales increasing 6% and 14%, respectively. The sales results include contribution from the company&#8217;s Mexican joint venture. Costco began incorporating results of its Mexico operations on a prospective basis with the commencement of its fiscal 2011 on August 30, 2010. Excluding the effects of higher gasoline prices ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/13/cost-costco-wholesale-corporation-continues-sales-momentum/71086/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(FDO) Family Dollar Stores Second Quarter 2011 Earnings Scorecard</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/10/fdo-family-dollar-stores-second-quarter-2011-earnings-scorecard/70603</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/10/fdo-family-dollar-stores-second-quarter-2011-earnings-scorecard/70603#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 11 Apr 2011 03:04:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dollar General Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=70603</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc. (FDO), the operator of self-service retail discount store chains, recently posted second-quarter 2011 results. Street analysts had nearly a week to ponder on the news. In the subsequent paragraphs, we will cover the recent earnings announcement, subsequent analysts’ estimate revisions as well as the Zacks Rank and long-term recommendation on the stock. Earnings Report Review Family dollar’s quarterly earnings of 98 cents a share was in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate, but climbed 21% from 81 cents earned in the prior-year quarter due to healthy sales witnessed in the Consumable and Seasonal categories. Management now expects third-quarter 2011 earnings between 92 cents and 97 cents, and fiscal 2011 earnings in the range of $3.13 and $3.23. The company posted an increase of 8.3% in revenue ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/10/fdo-family-dollar-stores-second-quarter-2011-earnings-scorecard/70603/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(WMT) Walmart Announces Plans to Expand in China</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/10/wmt-walmart-announces-plans-to-expand-in-china/70412</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/10/wmt-walmart-announces-plans-to-expand-in-china/70412#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 11 Apr 2011 03:03:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COST]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costco Wholesale Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TGT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=70412</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Walmart Stores Inc. (WMT) plans  to buy more floor space in China as it moves to expand operations in the country. Company officials revealed that the retail giant aims to open Sam’s Clubs in 17 Chinese provinces over the next five years. Sam’s Club is a chain of membership-only retail warehouse clubs owned and operated by Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Walmart launched its first Sam’s Club in China on June 10, 2010. The club is expected to commence its operations from the second half of 2011 and has a good chance of generating 1000 new jobs directly or indirectly in the neighboring areas. Walmart stepped into the Chinese market for the first time through its Supercenter and Sam’s Club in Shenzhen in 1996. Currently, Walmart runs various kinds of stores in China including ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/10/wmt-walmart-announces-plans-to-expand-in-china/70412/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>(WMT) U.S. Initial Claims for Unemployment Fall Again</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/07/wmt-u-s-initial-claims-for-unemployment-fall-again/70932</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/07/wmt-u-s-initial-claims-for-unemployment-fall-again/70932#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 07 Apr 2011 17:22:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Kroger Company]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=70932</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance fell by 10,000 last week to 382,000. However, last week was revised up by 4,000, so one could see it as a 6,000 decrease. This was a bit better than the expected level of 386,000. The trend in initial claims is downward, although there have been some bumps along the way. The weekly numbers, after an erratic few months, seem to have broken decisively to the downside. First the holidays and then the bad weather seemed to have played havoc with the weekly numbers, but those effects should have passed by now. Let us hope the decline continues next week. Keeping Below the 400K Level We managed to remain below the 400,000 level of new jobless claims. If we can stay below it, probably signals ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/07/wmt-u-s-initial-claims-for-unemployment-fall-again/70932/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>(FDO) Family Dollar Stores Risk-Reward Balances</title>
		<link>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/04/fdo-family-dollar-stores-risk-reward-balances/70501</link>
		<comments>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/04/fdo-family-dollar-stores-risk-reward-balances/70501#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 04 Apr 2011 09:08:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>vitalstocks</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Discount Variety Stores]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dollar General Corporation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FDO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wal-Mart Stores Inc.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WMT]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stockbloghub.com/?p=70501</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Family Dollar Stores Inc.’s (FDO) strategic initiatives to improve merchandising, marketing and store operations have resulted in sustained growth in the top and bottom lines. Management now expects a growth of 8% to 10% in net sales, 5% to 7% in comparable-store sales and 19.5% to 23.3% in earnings per share for fiscal 2011. We believe there is a tremendous opportunity to increase sales and improve gross margin through effective price management, cost containment, tighter inventory control, private label offering, expanded operating hours and merchandise initiatives. Moreover, in order to enhance its market share Family Dollar intends to focus on both consumable and discretionary categories. The company’s point-of-sale technology (credit card and food stamp acceptance) and store realignment initiatives better positions it to drive traffic, meet customer oriented demand and improve ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stockbloghub.com/2011/04/04/fdo-family-dollar-stores-risk-reward-balances/70501/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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