trending Market Intelligence /marketintelligence/en/news-insights/trending/uxsyax7iezcz3-des4lkja2 content esgSubNav
In This List

Walmart, Tencent tie up on digital, smart retail; Walmart sues former tax chief

Blog

Using ESG Analysis to Support a Sustainable Future

Video

S&P Capital IQ Pro | Powered by Expert Insights

Blog

Q&A: Streamlining Analytics for TCFD Reporting

Blog

Evergrande and the wider impact: a sentiment analytics based perspective


Walmart, Tencent tie up on digital, smart retail; Walmart sues former tax chief

TOP NEWS

* Walmart Inc. and Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. entered into a strategic cooperation for digital and smart retail in China. Key focus areas will include customer experience, targeted marketing, payment services, memberships and communications through Tencent's popular Chinese social media platform WeChat. The tie-up will see Tencent direct its social media traffic to Walmart China, according to a statement that the Chinese company posted on its official WeChat account.

* Walmart sued former tax chief Lisa Wadlin, alleging her acceptance of a job as vice president of tax and tax policy at Amazon.com Inc. would violate her noncompete clause and cause harm to Walmart, Reuters reported. According to the lawsuit, Wadlin reportedly informed the company in January of her intention to resign as senior vice president and chief tax officer, but Walmart learned that she was joining Amazon only when separation papers were unsigned. The Bentonville, Ark.-based company is seeking a court order to enforce the noncompete clause that bars her from working for a competitor for two years, the news outlet added. Wadlin and Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Reuters said.

TEXTILES, APPAREL AND LUXURY GOODS

* Athletic apparel retailer Lululemon Athletica Inc. agreed to repurchase 3.3 million shares of its common stock from private equity firm Advent International Corp. in a private transaction. The shares will be bought back under the retailer's recently increased $600 million share repurchase program using cash on hand and available borrowings. Prior to these transactions, Advent, which also agreed to acquire a majority stake in Walmart's Brazilian operations, held 20.1 million shares of Lululemon, representing a 14.8% stake.

* Ralph Lauren Corp. plans to return 100% of free cash flow to shareholders in the next five years, returning over $2.5 billion on a cumulative basis through fiscal 2023 by dividends and repurchases, as it authorized a $1 billion share buyback program. The New York-based company's repurchase program is in addition to the $100 million available at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, bringing the company's total current authorization to $1.1 billion. The lifestyle brand's board also declared a quarterly dividend of 62.5 cents per share, a 25% increase, payable July 13 to shareholders of record at the close of business June 29.

* Stitch Fix Inc. is moving further beyond its core women's wear business, hoping to grow revenue by offering clothes for children. The subscription apparel service will start offering kids clothing in time for a new school year in the coming months. Selections of clothes and accessories, which the company calls "fixes," will include between eight and 12 items for children — more than the five items it includes in fixes for adults.

* Kering SA's Italian brand Gucci is targeting €10 billion in annual sales with a 40% EBIT margin, up from 2017's €6.2 billion in annual sales and 34% EBIT margin, but did not specify a timeframe to achieve its new sales target. In a presentation to investors offered through the luxury group's website, Gucci said revenue growth would be driven by licensing, organic wholesale, leveraging travel retail, space increases, e-commerce, new store concepts, and retail key performance indicators, or KPIs. The brand plans to increase sales density in the existing store network and improve retail KPIs of its physical retail operations, as well as triple e-commerce revenue by bolstering organic growth through higher penetration and enhanced customer experience.

MULTILINE RETAIL

* J.C. Penney Co. Inc., in partnership with online sports goods retailer Fanatics Inc., will roll out physical Fanatics stores inside 325 JCPenney locations. The department store chain also plans to launch another 325 Fanatics outlets in time for the back-to-school season. Moreover, 50 JCPenney flagship stores offer a fully immersive Fanatics shop experience featuring interactive iPads, back wall fan graphics and sports paraphernalia.

* Poundworld Retail Ltd. filed a notice of intent to give the discount store operator 10 business days to consider its options, including a sale of the British company, a person familiar with the matter told S&P Global Market Intelligence. The filing allows the company, owned by investment firm TPG Capital Management LP, additional protection to continue operations while negotiations with its buyers are ongoing. The source close to the company also denied reports that Poundworld is going into administration but did not specify what other options the retailer is reviewing and declined to disclose details about proposed transactions.

* Target Corp.'s Shipt same-day delivery program, its Drive Up pickup service, its from-store delivery program and the Target Restock next-day delivery service enables the company to become a strong competitor against Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. in the delivery segment, CNBC reported. The general merchandiser expects that same-day shipping through Shipt will be available in more than 135 markets by the end of June and for all "major product categories" by 2019, the news agency said. The expansion of the multiple initiatives encourages shoppers to buy more at Target, a company spokesperson reportedly said.

E-COMMERCE

* Rakuten Inc. said it acquired Palo Alto-based technology firm Curbside Inc. for an undisclosed amount. Curbside is a location-centric mobile commerce platform that connects stores and restaurants with mobile customers. It uses predictive arrival technology to streamline order fulfillment.

HYPERMARKETS AND SUPERCENTERS

* Australian supermarket chain Coles, which is set to be spun off as a separate entity from parent Wesfarmers Ltd., plans to invest more resources in a new strategic direction focused on technology and its fresh-food offer. During Wesfarmers' strategy briefing day, Coles managing director John Durkan said the business has developed a six-pronged "new, differentiated strategy" that will "make life easier" for customers, reduce cost base and deliver long-term earnings growth. To achieve that goal, Coles will spend 20% more on capital expenditure in 2019 than it did in the last two years, according to Durkan.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* A group of retail groups and two ATM networks are launching a coalition that they said will combat credit and debit card fraud and also improve secure payments systems that lag those of the rest of the world. The National Retail Federation said in a news release that the coalition, called the Secure Payments Partnership, will focus on incorporating emerging technologies within the payments industry, including mobile payments, facial recognition and fingerprints, as well as IP verification. Other members that make up the coalition include retail groups such as the National Grocers Association, the Food Marketing Institute and the National Association of Convenience Stores, as well as financial services and payments processors Shazam network and First Data's Star Network.

Now featured on S&P Global Market Intelligence

With Flipkart, Walmart stakes claim in India's competitive payments market

Retail port imports still expected to set record this summer

The day ahead

Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.

In Asia, the Hang Seng declined 1.76% to 30,958.21, and the Nikkei 225 decreased 0.56% to 22,694.50.

In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 was down 0.66% to 7,653.51, and the Euronext 100 was down 0.40% to 1,053.12.

On the macro front

The wholesale trade report and the Baker-Hughes Rig Count report are due out today.

The Daily Dose is updated as of 8 a.m. ET. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.