Afternoon BUZZERS: Apple Gears Up for iPad Mini, Target and Macy’s Sales Get SLAMMED

Target Corp. (NYSE:TGT) shares were down 0.73 percent in early afternoon trading. The retailer reported weaker-than-expected same-store sales growth of 2.1 percent in June, below expectations of 2.4 percent. However, the company reiterated its earnings forecast for its fiscal second-quarter.

Shares of Macy’s Inc. (NYSE:M) gained 3.33 percent this afternoon despite reporting disappointing sales for June. The company said same-store sales increased 1.2 percent in June, compared to estimates of 1.9 percent. Macy’s expects its fiscal 2012 earnings to be between $3.25 and $3.30 a share, below the $3.37 a share average analyst estimate.

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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares climbed 2.14 percent to reach $612. Speculation continues to build about the tech giant making a smaller iPad device to better compete with Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG). The WSJ reports that, “Component suppliers in Asia are preparing for mass production in September of a tablet computer with a smaller screen than the iPad, people familiar with the situation said, suggesting a launch for the device is near. Two of the people said that the tablet’s screen will likely be smaller than eight inches. The iPad’s screen measures 9.7 inches, unchanged since the first model was released in 2010.” Read More.

The Buckle Inc. (NYSE:BKE) shares dropped 4.39 percent this afternoon. The company was expected to turn in breakeven growth for June, but actually saw a dip of 2.5 percent for the month.

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