Sears Holding Corp. The retailer reported fourth-quarter profit that plunged more than analysts projected and said it would "tighten" management of costs and inventory to improve margins.
Natonal earnings
February 29, 2008 at 2:36AM
In a public letter to investors, Chairman Edward Lampert said Sears may expand locations where household names such as Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard are sold, saying that "it could be online, via catalog, or possibly even through other retail outlets."
Profit at the Hoffman Estates-based company skidded to $426 million, or $3.17 per share, during the three months that ended Feb. 2, down 47 percent from $811 million, or $5.27 per share, during the same period last year.
Meanwhile, revenue slipped to $15.07 billion from $16.18 billion. Excluding a one-time gain from the sale of some assets, Sears said it earned $3.04 during the quarter. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected fourth-quarter profit of $3.10 per share on higher revenue of $15.26 billion.
Sears shares closed at $101.40, down 20 cents.
Sprint Nextel Corp. The nation's third-largest wireless carrier recorded a massive fourth-quarter loss, predicted continued customer weakness and pulled the plug on paying dividends.
Blaming instability in the credit markets, Sprint Nextel said that it was not declaring dividends for the "foreseeable future" and was borrowing $2.5 billion from a revolving credit facility to improve the company's "financial flexibility." It said it still had $500 million in the credit facility.
Company shares closed down 86 cents, or 9.6 percent, at $8.09 Thursday after touching a new 52-week low of $7.75 earlier in the session.
Sprint Nextel, based in Overland Park, Kan., said it lost $29.5 billion, or $10.36 per share, during the quarter ending Dec. 31. The company earned $261 million, or 9 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
McClatchy Co. The Sacramento, Calif.-based publisher said Thursday it took a $1.47 billion accounting charge in the fourth quarter to reflect further declines in its stock price and a tough outlook for its newspapers.
The non-cash charge brought McClatchy's fourth-quarter loss to $1.43 billion or $17.46 per share, wider than the loss of $279.3 million or $3.40 per share it recorded in the same period a year ago.
McClatchy had reported preliminary earnings Feb. 4, but said then it was still determining how big an accounting charge it would have to take.
The company disclosed the charge and its final fourth-quarter earnings statement in a press release and in its regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
McClatchy reported a 14.9 percent decline in revenue for the fourth quarter to $573.4 million, as both advertising and circulation sales declined.
McClatchy, the No. 3 publisher in the United States and former owner of the Star Tribune, owns 30 daily newspapers, including the Miami Herald, the Sacramento Bee and the Charlotte Observer.
McClatchy's stock, which was used as partial payment for its acquisition of Knight Ridder Inc. in 2006, has been declining steadily for about three years since reaching the low $70s in the spring of 2005.
Shares fell 37 percent from $19.98 at the end of the third quarter to $12.52 at the end of the fourth. They lost another 28 cents or 2.8 percent, to close at $9.84 Thursday.
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Health care spending rose by 15%, driven by higher prices. Officials say solutions are needed to prevent Minnesotans from being priced out or delaying care they need.
