Financial News

NEW YORK — Shares of Rite Aid crossed the $2 mark Wednesday afternoon following analyst speculation about the prospects of a takeover by Walgreens, according to published reports.

MONTVALE, N.J. — Grocer A&P has emerged from bankruptcy as a privately held company.

As previously announced, Mount Kellett Capital Management, The Yucaipa Cos. and investment funds managed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, have provided $490 million in debt and equity financing to sponsor A&P’s reorganization plan and complete its balance sheet restructuring. In addition, JP Morgan and Credit Suisse arranged a $645 million exit financing facility.

IRVINGTON, N.Y. — Prestige Brands has rejected an unsolicited proposal from Genomma Lab, which seeks to acquire the over-the-counter and household cleaning products maker for $16.60 per share in cash, calling the deal inadequate, opportunistic and highly conditional.

WASHINGTON — Retail sales continue to rise for 2012 as the U.S. Census Bureau reported results of February sales on Tuesday.

U.S. retail and food services sales for February, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $407.8 billion, an increase of 1.1% from the previous month and 6.5% above the year-ago period. Retail trade sales were up 1.1% from last month and 6.3% above last year.

Americans are broadening their food horizons. ReportsnReports, an online market research reports library, published a new market research report titled “Packaged Food in the U.S.,” which indicated that ethnic food interest has drastically increased.

Mediterranean and Middle Eastern foods showed the biggest gains in the last three years in the ethnic food category. Sales of ethnic food products grew in food, drug and mass outlets by 3.5% in 2011, reaching nearly $3 billion by year’s end, according to a recent report from Mintel. That rate is the slowest measured in the past five years, according to Mintel.

ELMSFORD, N.Y. — Specialty pharmacy provider BioScrip had sales of $483.3 million in fourth quarter 2011 and $1.8 billion in fiscal year 2011, the company said Friday.

The company's fourth-quarter sales marked an increase of $32.9 million, while the sales for the year were $200 million over fiscal year 2010. Meanwhile, the company had profits of $6.7 million for the quarter and $7.9 million for the year.

Back pain is one of the leading reasons adults under the age of 45 years call in sick to work, second only to the common cold, according to the American Pain Foundation. All told, back pain results in about 83 million lost work days each year and is cited as one of the more common work-related injuries, especially among those working in physically demanding jobs, and the leading cause of job-related disability and work limitations in those under 45 years of age.