Retailers need this weekend, weather may keep customers away

Douglas McIntyre — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 06:10:00 EST

Filed under: Forecasts, Bad News, Sears Holdings (SHLD), Economic Data

Weather.com seems like a boring site, unless you are in the middle of a storm. It is actually a worthwhile exercise to look at how much snow is on the ground, particularly going into a big holiday weekend.

Shoppers are probably not going to get out much from Wisconsin to Boston. The Pacific Northwest and Northern Plains are about to be hit by a blizzard.

All of that is to say that the weekend the nation's retailers need to "catch up" on weak holiday sales, is likely to be a bit of a bust. Hard to buy things when you can't make it to the store.

According to Reuters, "Retailers prepared to open their doors early on Saturday in a final, frenzied push to save holiday sales, with the added disruption of a winter storm hitting the country's Midwest and Northeast.."

Wouldn't the intrepid shoppers come out anyway with Christmas just days away? Maybe not. People like to cover up the embarrassment of being broke. A storm is just the things.

And in Seattle, they are expecting seven inches of snow. Short Sears (NASDAQ: SHLD) on Monday.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Retailers need this weekend, weather may keep customers away originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 20 Dec 2008 06:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Disney, CBS, GE, see blue skies ahead for The Weather Channel

Jonathan Berr — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:07:00 EST

Filed under: Deals, Television, General Electric (GE), Time Warner (TWX), Private Equity, CBS Corp 'B' (CBS), Comcast Cl'A' (CMCSA)

Whomever buys The Weather Channel will probably see nothing but blue skies.ss

According to The New York Times' DealBook, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS), CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS), General Electric Company (NYSE: GE)'s NBC, Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX), Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and Liberty Media Inc. (NASDAQ: LINTA) are all vying to buy the Weather Channel from closely held Landmark Communication.

"Also, a handful of private equity firms, including Bain Capital, Providence Equity Partners and Madison Dearborn have reportedly indicated an interest, though they are unlikely to be serious bidders because of the tight credit markets," according to the paper.

Landmark reportedly is expecting to get $5 billion for the property though bidders tell the Times that $4 billion is a more realistic figure. I would venture that the company will get the higher figure because properties like this don't often come on the market.

Not only is the cable channel one of the most lucrative, its Web site is wildly popular as well. Unlike CNN, people don't just tune in when there is big news. Energy traders hang onto the channel's every word when they make bets on the hugely volatile commodities for oil, natural gas and electricity. People also rely on the company's forecasts to plan their lives. Moreover, The Weather Channel is in a good position to benefit from the public's growing interest in global warming.

Disney, CBS, GE, see blue skies ahead for The Weather Channel originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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