Financial News

MATTHEWS, N.C. — Harris Teeter Supermarkets on Thursday declared a quarterly dividend in the amount of $0.15 per share to be paid on Jan. 1, to shareholders of record on Dec. 14. This represents a $0.01 increase in the quarterly dividend amount, from the $0.14 per share that the company paid in previous quarters.

Harris Teeter also announced that its board declared a special dividend of $0.50 per share to be paid on Dec. 31 to shareholders of record on Dec. 14.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart maintained an optimistic outlook for the holiday season despite a 1.5% third-quarter comp increase that reflected a modest deceleration in sales momentum seen earlier this year.

RH Labs just launched a line of intimacy health products endorsed by Laura Berman, a well-known sex and relationship expert who hosts the show “In The Bedroom” on the Oprah Winfrey Network. Berman collaborated on the design of every product in her line, the company noted.


It’s the kind of endorsement that will heighten the importance of intimacy health as part of an overall healthcare regimen. 


Sales of intimacy enhancement devices were up 24.3% to $4.1 million over the 12 weeks ended Sept. 9, according to SymphonyIRI group data.

While daily coffee consumption is dominated by ground coffee — 35% of consumers drink roasted ground coffee every day — premium-priced single-cup coffee is gaining popularity and has led the growth in the coffee category between 2010 and 2012, according to Mintel.


The single-cup market ballooned from $103 million in 2007 to an estimated nearly $1.8 billion in 2012, and Mintel expects to see upside for the segment until 2017 due to new innovations and more 
private-label pods.

MINNEAPOLIS — A 2.9% third-quarter same-store sales increase and the sale of its credit card business pushed Target’s third-quarter profit up 17.6% to 96 cents a share.

Total sales increased 3.4% to $16.6 billion in the third quarter due to the 2.9% comp increase and the benefit of a net increase of 18 stores compared to the prior year. Target ended the period with 1,781 stores and was up against a challenging prior year comparison when comps advanced 4.3%.

As more Americans join the ranks of diabetics, the opportunity to target these consumers at the shelf becomes more crucial. 


Retailers like Rite Aid are using pull-box displays that allow customers to physically handle a blood-glucose meter before they make that purchase decision. That kind of consumer engagement, evident throughout Rite Aid’s latest Wellness format store, for example, helps anchor diabetes as a front-end destination center. 


After several lackluster years, cookie sales were up in 2011 and are likely to show slight gains this year. The category was buoyed largely by sales of basic cookies, according to a recent report from Mintel, while premium cookie sales were hurt by a tight economy and increased media attention on America’s obesity epidemic. Mintel forecasts more growth for the premium segment from 2013 to 2016.


With more people working from home, the office products category continues to expand. For the past year, sales of office supplies were up 4%, according to NPD analyst Lora Morsovillo, driven by sales of writing implements, mailing and shipping supplies, and office essentials, including paper clips and 
rubber bands.


Morsovillo said the trend toward personalization is evident in the category, creating more demand for products like coordinated pens 
and folders.