Profit for Whole Foods falls short of analysts’ estimates

Whole Foods Market reported a profit for its fiscal second quarter that fell short of Wall Street expectations, and the upscale grocer cut its outlook for the year.

The company, based in Austin, Texas, said sales at established locations rose 4.5 percent in the period, hurt by the shift of Easter to the third quarter this year. For the quarter ended April 13, Whole Foods earned $142 million, or 38 cents per share, which was unchanged from last year. Analysts expected 41 cents per share.

Revenue rose to $3.32 billion, but also fell short of the $3.34 billion Wall Street expected.

The company trimmed its sales and profit outlook for the year, sending its stock down nearly 10 percent in after-market trading.

Office Depot closing stores in wake of OfficeMax merger

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Office Depot Inc. said Tuesday it plans to close 400 U.S. stores, or more than 20 percent of the 1,900 Office Depot and OfficeMax stores.

Boca Raton, Fla.-based Office Depot completed its $1.2 billion merger with OfficeMax last year. The office-supply store closures relate to overlapping Office Depot and OfficeMax retail stores in some locations.

Chief Executive Roland Smith said the office-supply store closures will save about $75 million by the end of 2016.

GM adds to its list of recalls: About 60,000 Saturn Auras

General Motors Co. said Tuesday it will recall about 60,000 Saturn Auras from the 2007-2008 model years because of a transmission shift cable that could wear out and break.

The problem can make the shift lever look like it is in one gear when it actually is in another. GM said the problem has caused at least 28 crashes and four injuries but no fatalities in the past seven years.

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GM has recalled more than 6.1 million vehicles in the U.S. this year, and accounts for almost half of all recalls made nationally this year.

Video sales of major movies boost Disney income by 27%

Disney on Tuesday posted second-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street forecasts, helped by the home video sales of blockbuster movies “Frozen” and “Thor: The Dark World.”

Both films showed the power of buying multibillion-dollar content brands. “Thor” comes from Disney’s $4 billion purchase of Marvel Entertainment in 2009. “Frozen” was a direct result of adding creative talent from Pixar after Disney bought it for $7.4 billion in 2006.

Net income in the three months through March jumped 27 percent to $1.92 billion, or $1.08 per share, from $1.51 billion, or 83 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.


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