Finances

Home décor and furniture retailer Pier 1 Imports (PIR) reported its second-quarter results on September 13. The company reported strong comparable store sales and profit growth.

Total sales for the second quarter were $367.6 million. This is an increase of 8.3% compared to the same period last year when the company reported total sales of $339.6 million. Comparable store sales increased 6.7% during the quarter.

Pier 1 Imports' net income was $26.2 million for the second-quarter. This is an increase of 57.7% over the same period last year when the company's net income was $16.6 million. Further, earnings per share increased from $0.26 during the same period last year to $0.41 during the second quarter.

"We are pleased to report our 12^th consecutive quarter of strong comparable store sales gains and profit growth," stated Alex W. Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer. "The combination of our strong operating results and solid financial condition provide us with the flexibility to continue executing our three-year growth plan. We're building our e-Commerce platform, further improving the store portfolio, strengthening our infrastructure and returning value to our shareholders."

Pier 1 Imports manufactures, markets and distributes home furnishing accessories. The Texas-based company operates over 1,000 stores in North America and imports from over 50 countries.

Pier 1 Imports (PIR) shares ended the week at $19.78.

Coffee Holding Company Reports Earnings

Coffee Holding Company Inc. (JVA), a wholesale coffee roaster and dealer, reported its most recent quarterly earnings on September 12.

Total sales for the quarter were $44.5 million. This is a 24.4% increase over the same period last year when total sales were $35.7 million.

The company's net income was $1.2 million. This is an increase of 632% from the same period last year, when the company reported net income of $168,236. Additionally, the company reported earnings per share of $0.19. This is an increase of $0.16 per share over the same period last year.

"Although coffee prices on average were lower by $1 per pound, we achieved growth in our sales in all key areas, including green coffee sales, building upon our momentum from last quarter, while improving our gross margin by almost three percentage points as well," said Andrew Gordon, Coffee Holding's Chief Executive Officer.

Coffee Holding Company Inc. (JVA) is a wholesale coffee roaster and dealer that offers wholesale green coffee, private label coffee and branded coffee throughout the United States, Canada and abroad.

Coffee Holding Company Inc. (JVA) shares ended the week at $7.72.

Perfumania Holdings, Inc. Reports Earnings

Perfumania Holdings, Inc. (PERF), a wholesale distributor and retailer of perfumes and fragrances, reported its most recent quarterly earnings last week. A major development that influenced their earnings was Perfumania's acquisition of Parlux Fragrances, Inc. last April.

The company reported net sales of $108.2 million for the quarter. This is an increase of 4.4% from the same period last year when the company reported net sales of $103.6 million.

Perfumania Holdings reported a net loss of $18.6 million for the quarter. During the same period last year, the company reported net income of $521,000. On an earnings per share basis, while the company generated net income of $0.06 during the same period last year, the company reported a loss of $1.21 per share for the most recent quarter.

Perfumania's President and Chief Executive Officer, Michael Katz, commented on the earnings, "The combination of Perfumania and Parlux Fragrances Inc. is a major step toward building a more significant and financially stronger designer fragrance and beauty products company. Parlux brings a wealth of products and expertise as a licensee, manufacturer and international distributor."

The New York based company operates a chain of 344 full service retail stores each offering about 2,000 different fragrances for men, women and children.

Perfumania Holdings, Inc. (PERF) shares ended the week at $7.40.

The Dow started the week at 13,309 and closed at 13,593. The NASDAQ started the week at 3,136 and finished at 3,184. The S&P 500 started the week at 1,438 and ended at 1,466.

On September 13, the Federal Reserve announced plans to buy $40 billion in mortgage-backed securities each month in its third major attempt to jump-start the U.S. economy through quantitative easing. Unemployment has been above 8% since February 2009, placing pressure on the Federal Reserve to act.

In addition, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) stated that it would "likely hold the federal funds rate near zero at least through mid-2015. A highly accommodative stance of monetary policy will remain appropriate for a considerable time after the economic recovery strengthens." Ben Bernanke added, "Even after the economy starts to recover more quickly, even after the unemployment rate begins to move down more sizably, we are not going to rush to tighten policy. We are going to give it time to make sure the recovery is well established."

Critics argue that the Fed's announcement to buy mortgage backed securities will do little to spur the economy and risks increasing the rate of inflation. Avery Shenfeld of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce commented on the Fed's policy saying, "the reality is the weapons they have are not particularly powerful, but they might as well be used."

In the past four years, the Federal Reserve has held the interest rate at near zero and the central bank has purchased more than $2.3 trillion in assets. However, even with all of this prodding the unemployment rate has remained above 8%. In addition, the consumer price inflation is running at 2.1% over the past 12 months. Ben Bernanke attempted to assuage fears of runaway inflation, saying, "The Fed is ready to combat any inflation outbreak. The Fed has both the tools and the will to act at the appropriate time to avoid any emerging threat to price stability."

The 10-year Treasury note yield finished the week at 1.87% while the 30-year Treasury note yield finished the week at 3.09%.

Freddie Mac released its latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) on September 13, 2012. The results of the latest survey show that fixed mortgages (FRM) remain near all-time lows.

The 30 year FRM averaged 3.55% for the week. This average is the same as last week. Further, this is 0.54% lower than last year at this time when the 30-year FRM averaged 4.09%.

The 15-year FRM changed only slightly from the week prior, coming in at an average of 2.86% as opposed to an average of 2.85% last week. Both averages are significantly lower than last year at this time when the 15-year FRM averaged 3.3%.

"Despite a lackluster August employment report, Treasury bond yields and mortgage rates were little changed this week with the financial markets speculating on further monetary stimulus from the federal reserve," stated Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's Vice President and Chief Economist. "The economy added 96,000 net new workers in August, while revisions subtracted 41,000 from the prior two months; manufacturers cut 15,000 employees in August which represented the largest decline since August 2010. Meanwhile, approximately 368,000 people left the workforce thereby lowering the unemployment rate to 8.1%."

The money market fund finished this week at 0.5%. The 1-year CD finished at 0.7%.