Another quarter is left behind and J.C. Penney (JCP) continues to bleed cash like there is no tomorrow. The company's latest quarter didn't paint a pretty picture either. As time is ticking out, the company's options are narrowing. Can the company be saved?

The last quarter's results indicate that Ron Johnson's ideas were not good enough to help the company. The company reported a loss of $1.58 per share; excluding one-time items, the loss was $1.31 per share. The analysts were expecting the company to report a loss of 96 cents per share. To make the matters worse, the company reported a revenue decline of 16% (the analysts were expecting a drop of 15%) in addition to falling margins, as the gross margin fell from 37.6% to 31.3% since last year. The current margins represent the lowest margins in the last 10 years for J.C. Penney. There are so

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (JW.A) provides content and content-enabled digital services to customers worldwide.

Core businesses produce scientific, technical, medical and scholarly journals, reference works, books, database services, and advertising; professional books, subscription products, certification and training services and online applications; and educational content and services.

Education content and services include integrated online teaching and learning resources for undergraduate and graduate students, educators, and lifelong learners worldwide as well as secondary school students in Australia.

The use of technology enables the company to make its content efficiently more accessible to its customers around the world. The company maintains publishing, marketing, and distribution centers in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Australia.

1. Highly Rated Brand

John Wiley & Sons is consistently one of the highest rated publishers in the Thomson ISI Journal Citation Report, an important evaluator of journal impact. This has had an impact on its

This week we learned that E-Commerce Retail Sales growth slowed in the first quarter of 2013 compared to Q4 of 2012. Obviously, this is important information for Amazon.com (AMZN) shareholders, but does it mean we should sell the stock? Shareholders will be glad to hear that it is not a reason to sell the stock in my view. However, short sellers will be interested in why I would sell AMZN anyway.

The government published Quarterly E-Commerce Retail Sales data for the first quarter of 2013 this past week. The report showed sales increased 2.7% over Q4 2012, which was slower than reported fourth quarter growth of 4.4%. Total Retail Sales only managed 1.1% first quarter growth, reflecting the continued market share grab for e-commerce sales. However, e-commerce accounted for just 5.5% of total sales in Q1 versus only a slightly lower 5.4% share in Q4.

But what caused the

Electronics retailing giant Best Buy (BBY) will announce its Q1 results on May 20. We expect the company to report better year-over-year revenues largely due to its price matching policy. However, margins could come in lower due to aggressive pricing and its net profit may not see much upside.

Best Buy was in the news this quarter for three main reasons: the commencement of its price matching policy, setting up its Samsung-branded boutiques in its stores and the decision to exit Europe by selling off its stake in its joint venture with Carphone Warehouse.

CEO Hubert Joly seems to have taken some steps to arrest the slide in Best Buy’s stock, and these efforts are yielding results as evident from the stock performance over the last three months. The earnings results will clarify whether the price movement is sentiment-driven or backed by improved business prospects.

Exiting Europe

Last month, Best

Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) is certainly topical. The subject of activist investor Bill Ackman's 2012 reorganization and now run by Ackman-backed legendary railroader Hunter Harrison, the stock has gone nowhere but up since Harrison was put in office.

(click to enlarge)

Source: Yahoo Finance

Harrison has promised (and delivered) rapid improvements in the railway's "operating ratio" - a measure of its costs as a percentage of revenue and a metric frequently used to compare railways. Historically, the benchmark for operating ratio in Canada, was set by CN Rail, CP's major competitor, which itself was formerly run by Harrison. Harrison has set a target of getting the operating ratio into the mid 60% range by 2016. The time frame is important because it coincides with Harrison's 72nd birthday and longer-term investors will have to look to his successor for leadership thereafter.

There is no question that CP has improved its

Nordstrom, Inc.(JWN) is one of the most popular fashion retailers in the world. It also offers one of the best money making opportunities for long-term investors. The company has a superior business model, a relatively cheap stock and a good balance sheet. Its competitive advantage is in its keen understanding of fashion trends and great customer service. Long-term investors are strongly advised to consider purchasing this stock.

Important factors for the analysis:

1. Business model

Nordstrom benefits from its world-class customer service, very high quality brands, and excellent management. The company caters mostly to the high-end shoppers, and is often customers' first choice amongst all high-end retailers. In addition, the company has won a range of accolades over the years. For instance, the company was listed in Fortune's "World's Most Admired Companies" list in 2012. This is evidence of the company's strong focus on the customers' needs and

Call End: 11:30

Euroseas Ltd. (ESEA)

Q1 2013 Earnings Call

May 17, 2013 11:00 AM ET

Executives

Aristides Pittas - Chairman and CEO

Tasios Aslidis - CFO

Analysts

Presentation

Operator

Thank you for standing by, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Euroseas Conference Call on the first quarter, 2013 financial results. We have with us Mr. Aristides Pittas, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; and Mr. Tasios Aslidis, Chief Financial Officer of the company.

At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. There will be a presentation followed by a question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions) I must advise you the conference is being recorded today, Friday, May 17, 2013.

Please be reminded that the company announced their results this morning with a press release. Before passing the floor to Mr. Pittas, I would like to remind everyone that in today’s presentation and conference call, Euroseas will

Fast food retailer Wendy's (WEN) has had a tough path during the past several years, but we believe conditions are slowly getting better. Revenue in its first quarter results, released May 8, grew just 2% year-over-year to $603 million, falling a bit short of consensus estimates. Earnings per share weren't robust, but were still in-line with consensus expectations at $0.03 compared to $0.01 in the same period a year ago. Adjusted EBITDA, a metric Wendy's has been using over the past few years, grew 21% year-over-year to $77.3 million.

Since the Great Recession, we've seen Wendy's mostly underperform its peers, but the firm is taking steps in the right direction to narrow the gap. North American same-store sales grew 1% year-over-year at company operated restaurants - not a terrible number and actually better than rival McDonald's (MCD), which saw same-store sales dip 1.2%. Franchise operated locations grew same-store

Quick Take

• Limited Brands is expected to release its Q1 fiscal 2013 earnings on May 22.
• According to a recent press release, the company will report a moderate 3% increase in overall comparable store sales.
• Victoria’s Secret started the quarter strongly, but its growth slowed subsequently due to lower demand for apparel products, aggressive promotions and a weak response to new product launches.
• At Bath & Body Works, the growth remained slow but steady due to the mixed impact of lower store traffic and strength in core product categories.

Limited Brands (LTD), the parent company of Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works, is expected to release its Q1 fiscal 2013 earnings on May 22. According to a recent press release, the company will report overall comparable store sales growth of 3% with similar growth across its main brands. The retailer will also report lower margins

By Todd Bunton

CEC Entertainment, Inc. (CEC) recently delivered a strong first-quarter earnings beat as same-store sales increased 1.6%. Management also provided 2013 earnings guidance ahead of consensus, prompting analysts to revise their estimates significantly higher. It is a Zacks Rank No. (Strong Buy) stock.

Although shares have risen strongly since the Q1 report, valuation still looks reasonable with the stock trading at 13x forward earnings. So there is plenty of room for CEC to continue running higher.

CEC Entertainment and its franchisees operate 566 Chuck E. Cheese's stores located in 47 states and eight foreign countries and territories. Chuck E. Cheese's feature games, rides, play areas, musical and comic robotic entertainment, and several dining options including pizzas.

First Quarter Results

CEC reported first quarter results on May 2. Total revenues rose 3% to $255.3 million, ahead of the consensus of $250.0 million. This was driven by

Lowe's (LOW) reports its fiscal q1 '14 earnings before the bell on Wednesday, May 22, 2013, a day after Home Depot (HD). Analyst consensus, per ThomsonReuters is looking for $0.51 in earnings per share (EPS) on $13.45 billion in revenues for expected year-over-year growth of 16% and 2%, respectively.

Quarterly comps are expected between 2%-3%.

You cannot talk about LOW without also talking about Home Depot , since the two competitors are like dueling banjos in the oligopolistic, do-it-yourself home improvement business, and in terms of competitive strategy, they've "yinged and yanged" their way through the last 13 years, i.e., when HD flags, LOW seems to do better, and vice versa. (Read our HD preview here, since HD reports its fiscal q1 '14 the day prior to LOW.

To give readers some background or history, HD and LOW had many tailwinds in the housing market of the late 1990s

Fierce and growing competitors, low switching costs, hurricanes, terrorist attacks, geopolitical hostilities, government regulation, high costs of fuel, labor, insurance and capital, over indebtedness, stringent emission standards, and on and on… the risks facing global airlines are enough to make your head swirl. With such a tumultuous operating environment it is no wonder that in 2005 Delta Air Lines (DAL), Northwest, United (UAL) and US Air (LCC) were all bankrupt.

In fact, according to an article published by CNNMoney in September 2005 nearly half the capacity in the U.S. airline industry was operating under bankruptcy court oversight. (CNNMoney: Delta Air Lines Files for Bankruptcy)

Given the history and structure of the industry it is surprising that Delta recently announced it was planning on resuming its regular dividend and returning an additional $500MM in cash to shareholders via a share repurchase. All in, Delta communicated that it intends to

China Auto Logistics Inc. (CALI)

Q1 2013 Earnings Conference Call

May 17, 2013 8:00 am ET

Executives

Ken Donenfeld – DGI Investor Relations

Lawrence Wang – Member of the Financial Team

Shiping Tong – Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer

Yang Feng – Financial Controller

Richard Sun – Secretary

Presentation

Operator

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by. Welcome to the China Auto Logistics 2013 First Quarter Investor Conference Call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. Following the presentation, we will conduct a question-and-answer session and instructions will be provided at that time. (Operator Instructions) I would like to remind everyone that this conference call is being recorded today, May 17, 2013.

I will now turn the conference over to Ken Donenfeld with DGI Investor Relations. Please go ahead, sir.

Ken Donenfeld

Thank you very much, and thank you all for joining us this morning.

McDonald's (MCD) reported its April same-store sales results a couple of weeks ago, noting same-store sales deterioration in 2 of 3 major market segments and just 0.7% growth in the U.S. The company's international expansion was supposed to add growth to the McDonald's story, but it was sorely missing in April. So where's the beef behind the stock's recent climb?

Last Friday, we learned that Yum Brands' (YUM) China Division experienced a 29% same-store sales decline, so McDonald's was not alone in the weakness it experienced in what was supposed to be an important growth market. YUM's KFC brand in China saw impact from national avoidance of chicken due to the spread of a new strain of avian influenza, H7N9.

McDonald's April same-store sales were down 2.9% in the company's Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA) segment. The company said sales were soft due to avian influenza fears mostly

On May 9th, Priceline.com (PCLN) announced excellent results for the first quarter of 2013. Here is the skinny: about $9.2B in bookings for the first quarter, up 36% year over year. Non-GAAP net income came out at $297 million or $5.76 per share, up 35% versus prior year. Worldwide hotel room night reservations came out at 63.2 million for the quarter, a figure much lower than the bookings, but still up 38% year-over-year. Rental car days were up 43%. Overall revenue grew 25% y/y to $1.3B, 69% of it coming from international markets. So far, the market has reacted extremely well to the announcement. Shares are 9% up since the announcement and there are no early signals of a correction.

But can Priceline be able to continue delivering such amazing rates of growth in the long term? This is a very important question, as both the current market capitalization of