Rumors have been circulating for almost a month about Borders' (BGP) possible bankruptcy filing. People familiar with the situation told The Wall Street Journal that the filing could come as early as the middle of this month.

Borders has been trying to hold off the filing by delaying payments to vendors. But this is only temporary. Now the matter has reached a critical stage. The company has obtained about $500 million to $550 million in debtor in possession financing that would keep the company operating after a court filing.

Continue reading Borders Nears Possible Bankruptcy Filing

Borders Nears Possible Bankruptcy Filing originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 02 Feb 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Reports surfaced Thursday that Borders (BGP) started negotiating with banks for financing to help keep the bookstore chain liquid during bankruptcy proceedings. Later in the evening, GE Capital made a $550 million financing commitment to the embattled company.

This financing should allow Borders the financial flexibility and level of liquidity to advance its restructuring plan. The plan includes closing stores, cutting costs, expanding its rewards program, and increasing non-book offerings -- all with the goal of improving cash flow and profits. Borders did note that it will explore alternative possibilities, such as restructuring its debt under court supervision.

Continue reading GE Capital Commits $550 Million to Borders

GE Capital Commits $550 Million to Borders originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Borders' (BGP) loss widened in the third quarter to $74.4 million or $1.03 per share, compared with a loss of $37.7 million or 63 cents a share, according to the Wall Street Journal. Revenue fell 18% to $475.6 million. Same-store sales were down 13%. Gross margins fell to 15.4% from 18.5%.

Borders stock was hit hard after hours, falling 7.3% to $1.27. Earlier in the week, William Ackman said his hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management would finance a $960 million takeover bid for Borders' larger rival, Barnes & Noble (BKS).

Continue reading Borders Earnings: Loss Widens in Q3

Borders Earnings: Loss Widens in Q3 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 10 Dec 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: Briefly Celebrating DJIA 10,000 (MSG, STT, SIRI, FDO, BA, BGP, EMC)

Closing Bell: Briefly Celebrating DJIA 10,000 (MSG, STT, SIRI, FDO, BA, BGP, EMC) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Below are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks. Click through to the original posts for more details.

• Ann Taylor Stores Corp. (ANN) shares rallied on heavy volume after it posted better-than-expected Q1 earnings.
• AutoZone Inc. (AZO) Q3 earnings easily beat consensus expectations and same-store sales rose sharply.
• Borders Group Inc. (BGP) posted a wider operating loss, decreasing gross margin, and a same-store sales decline.
• Campbell Soup Co. (CPB) posted strong Q3 results and offered guidance, boosting shares on a down-market day.
• Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) posted better-than-expected Q3 results, due in part to a surge in membership sales.

Continue reading Earnings Highlights: AutoZone, Borders, Campbell, Costco, Heinz, J. Crew, TiVo ...

Earnings Highlights: AutoZone, Borders, Campbell, Costco, Heinz, J. Crew, TiVo ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 29 May 2010 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Borders Group Down on Q1 Release

Borders Group Down on Q1 Release originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 27 May 2010 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks:

• Acuity Brands Inc. (AYI) Q2 results were essentially flat but an analyst's upgraded helped boost shares.
• Borders Group Inc. (BGP) reported strong Q4 earnings due to cost cutting but revenue continued to decline.
• Cal-Maine Foods Inc. (CALM) received an analyst's downgrade on valuation following release of its Q3 report.
• CarMax Inc. (KMX) rose to a new 52-week high following better-than-expected Q4 earnings and sales results.
• Charming Shoppes Inc. (CHRS) posted a smaller-than-expected Q4 net loss and said same-store sales declined.

Continue reading Earnings Highlights: Borders, CarMax, LDK Solar, Mosaic, RIM, Rite Aid ...

Earnings Highlights: Borders, CarMax, LDK Solar, Mosaic, RIM, Rite Aid ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 03 Apr 2010 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Borders' New CEO Gets Pay Bump

Borders' New CEO Gets Pay Bump originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Borders CEO Ditches Books for Groceries

Borders CEO Ditches Books for Groceries originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 27 Jan 2010 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Borders gets an e-book play with an investment in Kobo

Borders gets an e-book play with an investment in Kobo originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Dec 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Though the earnings season is winding down, and the coming week includes the Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S., plenty of reports are still due out. And analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters don't seem to be expecting too many turkeys among this week's bunch.

Leading U.S. meat processor Tyson Foods Inc. (TSN), which has just named a new chief executive officer and a new chief operating officer, is expected to report fiscal fourth-quarter earnings of $0.26 per share, up from $0.14 in the same period of last year. But revenue is expected to total $6.9 billion, or 4.3% less than a year ago. The full-year forecast is for a profit of $0.25 per share (-16.7) on $26.4 billion (-3.9%) in sales. This dividend payer has offered upside surprises in the past two quarters, topping estimates by 11 cents per share in the third quarter.

Continue reading The week in preview: No turkey earnings from Tyson, Hormel, Cracker Barrel ...

The week in preview: No turkey earnings from Tyson, Hormel, Cracker Barrel ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 22 Nov 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), a bookseller that competes with Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT), and Borders Group, Inc. (NYSE: BGP), issued a Q2 earnings report on Thursday morning that in no way makes me want to invest in the company. As far as I'm concerned, the retailer has a lot of work to do, and I wouldn't want to involve my portfolio with a business that is still trying to find its way.

Barnes & Noble earned 14 cents per share on an adjusted basis. Earnings.com reports an expectation of 10 cents per share. So management went beyond projections. Should shareholders be content with such news and call it a day?

Continue reading Barnes & Noble struggles with comps in the second quarter

Barnes & Noble struggles with comps in the second quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After the Memorial Day holiday in the United States, the earnings spotlight turns to Canadian banks: Bank of Montreal (NYSE: BMO), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (NYSE: CM), Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY), and Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE: TD) are all scheduled to report their second-quarter results.

While banks north of the border of generally have held up better than their U.S. counterparts, analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect the four listed above to report that earnings declined between 20% and 30% since the same period of last year. All four have P/E ratios around 10, and they are paying dividends. Shares of all four have surged 50% to 83% in the past three months, but are still 26% to 38% lower than a year ago.

Continue reading The week in preview: Canadian and U.S. banks, and more

The week in preview: Canadian and U.S. banks, and more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 24 May 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With a new CEO looking to bring Borders Group (NYSE: BGP) back to viability and a stock price hovering at less than than $2 -- but up big time from its 52-week low of 34 cents -- the company is revamping its board of directors in a big way.

The company is reducing its board of directors from 10 members to 8; Edna Medford and Michael Weiss will not be standing for reelection. In a press release, the company said that "Five of the remaining incumbent Directors -- Don Campbell, Joel Cohen, Amy Lane, Brian Light, and Larry Pollock --- will stand for re-election at the annual meeting, but have advised the Board of their intention to step down from the Board over the coming months as suitable replacements are found."

Continue reading Borders Group set to revamp its board of directors

Borders Group set to revamp its board of directors originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 17 Apr 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• American Electric Power Co. Inc. (NYSE: AEP) lowered its earnings forecast for fiscal 2009.
• Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) reported better-than-expected Q2 earnings and strong revenue growth.
• Borders Group Inc. (NYSE: BGP) reported better-than-expected Q4 earnings despite a decline in sales.
• CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) soaring earnings beat Q4 expectations despite a decline in revenue.
• Colgate-Palmolive Co. (NYSE: CL) was downgraded on risk to its earnings from currency issues.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Research in Motion, Monsanto, Apollo Group, Borders and more

Earnings highlights: Research in Motion, Monsanto, Apollo Group, Borders and more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 04 Apr 2009 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

According to this news source, Borders delivered adjusted income equal to $1.05 per share. The market was looking for $0.95 per share. Beating by a dime is a pretty wide margin and something to celebrate. If you're a healthy company, that is. Borders is not a healthy company. It's had all kinds of problems. For instance, Zac Bissonnette recently reported on the bookseller's debt problems and how it needed to secure a loan to stay running. Elizabeth Harrow discussed the terrible holiday-selling season and the replacement of the CEO back in January. And there have been workforce reductions.

Continue reading Borders wins the earnings game, but it's still a loser in my book

Borders wins the earnings game, but it's still a loser in my book originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Borders stays afloat with loan extension

Borders stays afloat with loan extension originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Borders lays off more workers

Borders lays off more workers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 05 Mar 2009 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Borders lays off 10% of its corporate workers

Borders lays off 10% of its corporate workers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 16:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Borders gets a new board member originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 Jan 2009 12:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.