By Phil Wahba

(Reuters) – Avon Products Inc (AVP.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) on Tuesday reported a disappointing quarterly profit as the company dealt with higher costs and declining sales, potentially giving new ammunition to smaller rival Coty’s bid to take over the world’s largest direct seller of cosmetics.

Avon sold 1 percent fewer items, and saw the number of active sales representatives continue to slip, falling 2 percent. Excluding the impact of currency, sales edged up 1 percent.

NEW YORK/SEATTLE (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp is jumping into the fast-growing e-books market by investing $605 million over five years in Barnes & Noble Inc’s Nook e-reader and college business, as it looks to unlock Amazon.com and Apple Inc’s grip on the exploding tablet computer market.

The move comes just six months before the world’s largest software maker is due to launch its new touch-enabled Windows 8 operating system, and the inclusion of a Nook app on Windows tablets should allow them to compete with Apple’s iPad and Amazon’s Kindle Fire.

NEW YORK/SEATTLE (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp is jumping into the fast-growing e-books market by investing $300 million (184 million pounds) in Barnes & Noble Inc’s Nook e-reader and college business, as it looks to unlock Amazon.com and Apple Inc’s grip on the exploding tablet computer market.

The move comes just six months before the world’s largest software maker is due to launch its new touch-enabled Windows 8 operating system, and the inclusion of a Nook app on Windows tablets should allow them to compete with Apple’s iPad and Amazon’s Kindle Fire.

By Phil Wahba

(Reuters) – Barnes & Noble Inc said it will separate its digital and college book businesses into a new subsidiary, giving Microsoft Corp a 17.6 percent stake in the new unit, and the bookstore operator’s shares nearly doubled in premarket trading on Monday.

Microsoft will invest $300 million for its stake in the new unit, which will be a Delaware limited liability company. Its name has not been decided.

April 26 (Reuters) – Liz Claiborne Inc on Thursday
reported stronger-than-expected quarterly sales on big gains at
its kate spade high-end brand and as declines moderated at its
biggest brand of Juicy Couture.

Total sales from continuing operations fell 4.1 percent to
$317.1 million during the quarter that ended March 31 for the
clothesmaker and retailer.

April 25 (Reuters) – Jones Group Inc on Wednesday
warned investors that retailers were being cautious in placing
orders for the autumn and there was still a need to offer deals
to shoppers, overshadowing strong demand for its higher-end shoe
brands.

Jones, the clothing and shoe manufacturer behind such brands
as Nine West, Jones New York and Anne Klein, also reported weak
sales in its wholesale jeans and sportswear lines.

By Phil Wahba

(Reuters) – Coach Inc (COH.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) saw the pace of its growth in North America slow in the third quarter as sales at department stores dipped and it eliminated the use of coupons at its factory outlets.

The company’s shares fell 4 percent in morning trading.

Sales at its stores open at least a year in North America, still Coach’s biggest market by far, rose 6.7 percent. But that compared to 8.8 percent in the previous quarter.

April 24 (Reuters) – Upscale leather goods maker Coach Inc
posted a higher-than-expected quarterly profit on
Tuesday, benefiting from sales gains in China and better
margins, but the pace of growth in North America slowed and
shares fell nearly 3 percent in premarket trading.

Sales at its stores open at least a year in North America,
still Coach’s biggest market by far, rose 6.7 percent. But that
compared to 8.8 percent in the previous quarter.

By Phil Wahba

(Reuters) – Barnes & Noble Inc (BKS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shares rose as much as 16.8 percent on Monday after a U.S. regulatory filing showed that New York-based activist hedge fund Jana Partners LLC had taken a large stake in the bookstore chain.

Jana Partners, known for pushing for changes at the companies it invests in, had bought 6.96 million shares earlier in April, giving it an 11.6 percent stake, the company disclosed in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission late Friday.

By Phil Wahba

(Reuters) – Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (RCL.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the world’s second-largest cruise operator, reported lower first quarter earnings and cut its full-year profit forecast, citing higher fuel costs and the impact on bookings of a rival’s deadly shipwreck in January.

Royal Caribbean, which has faced slower business after the Costa Concordia accident of its larger competitor Carnival Corp & Plc (CCL.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) (CCL.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) in January, said overall booking volumes since February were down by a mid-single-digit percentage.