By Anna Prior
A number of retailers are slated to report quarterly results
next week including Target Corp. (TGT) and Macy's Inc. (M), giving
investors an even clearer picture of the critical holiday season
and start to the new year.
Meanwhile, Varonis Systems Inc. is expected to make its public
trading debut, and wireless venture LightSquared will seek a
creditor vote on its newest reorganization plan.
Target, Macy's to Report Quarterly Results
Retailer Target is scheduled to report fiscal fourth-quarter
results on Wednesday.
The company has generated headlines since confirming in
mid-December that hackers uploaded software into its system to
steal customer data over the holidays. The company's sales were
weaker following the data breach, which led it to temper
expectations for the quarter.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters are expecting Target to
report earnings of 80 cents a share and revenue of $21.46
billion.
Meanwhile, analysts are expecting Macy's to post per-share
earnings of $2.17 and revenue of $9.27 billion, when the
department-store operator reports fiscal fourth-quarter results on
Tuesday.
In January, Macy's Chairman and Chief Executive Terry J.
Lundgren touted the retailer's holiday season, in which same-store
sales increased 4.3% compared with the prior year. He said the
company's merchandise generated a positive response from customers
"even in a questionable macroeconomic environment with challenging
weather in multiple states."
Other retailers reporting results next week include J.C. Penney
Co. (JCP), Kohl's Corp. (KSS), Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF),
Barnes & Noble Inc. (BKS), L Brands Inc. (LB), Gap Inc. (GPS)
and Best Buy Co. (BBY).
Varonis Systems IPO Expected
Data-governance software firm Varonis Systems is expected to
make its public trading debut Friday, with 4.8 million shares
expected to price between $17 and $19 a share.
Varonis Systems filed plans for an initial public offering of up
to $100 million in stock in November, as the firm looked to raise
funds for general corporate purposes.
The New York City-based company's software allows enterprises to
map, analyze and manage unstructured data. Varonis specializes in
human-generated data, which includes a company's spreadsheets, word
processing documents and other data created by employees. Its
software also is used for data security, archiving and file
synchronization.
Also expected to make its public trading debut is clinical
solutions provider Lumenis Ltd., which has an IPO slated for
Thursday.
LightSquared Seeks Creditor Vote on New Proposal
On Monday in Manhattan, wireless venture LightSquared will ask a
judge to send its newest reorganization plan to certain creditors
for a vote.
The $2.65 billion plan isn't contingent upon regulatory approval
for its network and doesn't include participation from Dish Network
Corp. (DISH) or its chairman Charlie Ergen, a major LightSquared
debt holder.
Also Monday, Atlantic Express Transportation Corp. will ask a
bankruptcy judge to approve National Express Corp.'s $11.75 million
bid for its Philadelphia school district busing operations, while
on Wednesday, women's clothing retailer Dots LLC plans to auction
itself off at the Livingston, N.J., office of its bankruptcy
counsel, Lowenstein Sandler LLP.
--Joseph Checkler contributed to this article.
Write to Anna Prior at anna.prior@wsj.com
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