BANGALORE, April 28 (Reuters) – Cosmetics maker Revlon Inc
posted a higher first-quarter profit as shoppers spent
more on cosmetics and personal care products in a recovering
economy, pushing its shares up 5 percent to a near 1-year high.

New York-based Revlon said sales in its domestic market –
which accounts for about 55 percent of the total — rose 2.3
percent. At least one analyst had expected U.S. sales to dip.

BANGALORE, April 20 (Reuters) – Metro Inc (MRUa.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz),
Canada’s No. 3 grocer, is eyeing benefits from small rise in
basic food prices after witnessing food-price deflation and
competitive discounting that ate into its margins in the second
quarter.

All through last year, a drop in wholesale food prices, also
known as food deflation, forced Canada’s grocers and retailers
to tighten profit margins as they fought off increased
competition and harsher regulations.

BANGALORE (Reuters) – Diamond Foods Inc (DMND.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) will buy Pringles from Procter & Gamble Co (PG.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) for $1.5 billion in stock, snagging a global brand that will more than triple the size of its snack foods business.

Pringles, known for its potato chips sold in more than 140 countries, will give Diamond a wider access to international markets and also more than double its sales in the United States and the UK.

BANGALORE, April 5 (Reuters) – Diamond Foods Inc
will buy Pringles from Procter & Gamble Co for $1.5
billion in stock, snagging a global brand that will more than
triple the size of its snack foods business.

Pringles, known for its potato chips sold in more than 140
countries, will give Diamond a wider access to international
markets and also more than double its sales in the United States
and the UK.

BANGALORE, April 1 (Reuters) – Clothing chain American
Apparel , known for racy advertising and its founder’s
legal problems, may file for bankruptcy if it does not get
enough money to keep running, and might even have to liquidate,
the company said.

Shares of the company, which is looking for other sources of
cash and has hired a financial adviser, fell as much
as 27 percent to 70 cents on Friday.

BANGALORE, March 29 (Reuters) – It’s a time of change at
American Eagle Outfitters Inc , and all the activity is
dividing experts on what to do with the shares of the teen
clothes retailer.

The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based company is fighting a
daily battle to balance sales and margins, even as it gets ready
for the retirement of its chief executive of 9 years and deals
with continued buzz that it is a potential takeover target.

BANGALORE (Reuters) – Women’s clothes retailer Talbots Inc (TLB.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which had seen little success in its bid to shed a stodgy image and attract a younger clientele, is back to focusing on its core customers and the move seems to be paying off.

Shares of the company shot up 28 percent, after the company posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss and said first-quarter sales were shaping up better than expected.

BANGALORE (Reuters) – Brown Shoe Co (BWS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said it had resolved most of the issues with a new IT system that had disrupted wholesale deliveries and led to a lower-than-expected fourth-quarter profit, which knocked its shares down 28 percent to a 6-month low.

Brown Shoe, which owns the Famous Footwear and Naturalizer brands, said the IT system problems had pushed up delivery costs and hit its on-time deliveries.

BANGALORE, March 15 (Reuters) – Brown Shoe Co

reported a
lower-than-expected quarterly profit as
problems at its wholesale unit offset strong retail
sales, sending its shares down as much as 28
percent .

Rising costs hammered the low-margin
wholesale part of the business, which accounted for 29 percent
of sales in the quarter.

BANGALORE (Reuters) – Ann Taylor Stores Corp (ANN.N: Quote, Profile, Research) predicted stronger-than-expected first-quarter sales after a strong holiday quarter, and the women’s clothes retailer renamed itself as it shifts more to online and outlet stores.

Ann Taylor shares rose as much as 16 percent to on Friday.

The company, which decided to change its name to Ann Inc, outlined plans to boost business at its online and outlet channels this year as they generate better sales volumes.