Financial News

NORWALK, Conn. — GE Capital Corporate Retail Finance announced it is administrative agent and sole lender on a $65 million asset-based credit facility for Navarro Discount Pharmacy. The financing will be used to refinance debt and for general corporate purposes.

“GE Capital understands retailing and has a great deal of experience financing drug stores,” Navarro Discount Pharmacy CEO Juan Ortiz said. “This allowed us to secure the right capital structure to help build our business.”

MATTHEWS, N.C. — Momentum remains on the side of Family Dollar, as the company late Thursday reported another quarter of record sales and profits and the opening of 101 units, which included its first stores in California.

MINNEAPOLIS — Joe Namath he’s not. Target chairman, president and CEO Gregg Steinhafel assured investors last month that December comps would exceed November’s 1.8% increase, but then Thursday morning reported a disappointing 1.6% increase and a reduced profit forecast.

PLEASANTON, Calif. — Safeway on Thursday announced the sale of 16 of its Genuardi's stores in the greater Philadelphia area to Giant Food Stores, a division of Ahold USA. Safeway will continue to operate these stores until the transaction closes, and the company is working through an orderly transition for all of these stores.

In addition, Safeway plans to close three Genuardi's stores and sell the remaining eight Genuardi's stores, which it will continue to operate while it is working with potential buyers.

ISSAQUAH, Wash. — Net sales for Costco rose 9% in December to nearly $10.1 billion, the company announced Thursday.

The company also reported that U.S. comparable-store sales and international comps rose 7$ and 9%, respectively, during the five-week period. Excluding gasoline price increases and a slightly negative impact of foreign-currency translations, the quarter's same-store sales rose 7%, Costco noted.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid's same-store sales increased 3.6% in December 2011, compared with December 2010, the company said Thursday.

Front-end same-store sales increased by 0.7%, while pharmacy same-store sales increased by 5.2% and prescription count at comparable stores increased 3.2%. Total store sales increased by 3.3% to $2.6 billion, compared with December 2010's nearly $2.6 billion.

BOLINGBROOK, Ill. — Beauty retailer Ulta Beauty posted a same-store sales increase of 12.6% during the seven-week holiday period.

Total net sales for the seven-week holiday period, from Nov. 13 to Dec. 31, were $386 million, a 24.4% increase from the prior-year holiday period of $310.4 million. Comparable store-sales for the 2011 holiday period increased 12.6%, compared with a 9.5% increase during the same period in the prior year. Over a two-year period, comparable store sales increased 22.1%.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens on Thursday reported an approximate 150 basis-point negative impact on prescriptions filled based on prescription transfers, and other trend analysis of prescriptions managed by Express Scripts, as the chain posted its first monthly earnings statement following the discontinuation of Walgreens' relationship with Express Scripts. That represents an increase from a 110 basis-point impact in November, but falls short of the 200 basis-point impact projected by Credit Suisse research analyst Ed Kelly earlier this week.