troubled teen retailer abercrombie and fitch getting a boost.t suisse up greating from out perform. it expecting them to finally address what they call uncompetitive pricing strategy. pete, do you want to take a stab at abercrombie? >> they certainly are. when you look at them they look expensive. you look at them on a forward pe, they don't, trading at 15 times. it's understandable the teen retail space. still staying in the sport. if i'm going to be in retail right now it might be lulu but it's going to be under armour, nike. but not right now am i in any amf. i still own puts in jcp and i'm getting crushed on those unfortunately. that stock is making a heck of a move today. >> this thing has been hammered for a long time. but lack of respect for what's going on at the business, lack of respect for what's going on with the stock price. anybody think that this is a turning point in this upgrade accentuates that? >> the sales are soft. financial engineering. $150 million share repurchase. this is cost savings. this is what it is to stem the down

the problem i have with urban outfitters or abercrombie & fitch is the trends are not very good.ll the moving averages are downward sloping. the long-term trend has rolled over so we are skeptical when we see earnings like that. gary kovacs, this goes to the security issue and retail is front and center like target. >> capturing both at the point of sale as well as through wi-fi, it is hard data. >> explained the wi-fi question. >> we walk into a store and they're smart phones are looking for wi-fi signals and send a ping and stores use that to track where we walk through the aisle. >> are you kidding? >> it is huge data. >> the infrastructure is in place for these retailers to do more with technology but you have urban outfitters saying they are testing pickup in the store that will not happen until the second half of 2015. why is there a huge time lag? >> we are add and we are the mtv generation. from the stores, it's about targeting you before you get into the store. that is what the data is all about. they can tell through your mail and cookies and everything on your computer

. >>> abercrombie & fitch is giving its new hollister brand a face lift. abercrombie is working with west coast vendors to come up with a supply chain that's fast and responsive. the shift will mean lowering prices. abercrombie began rolling out hollister stores 14 years ago to appeal to younger teens. the company says it's trying to craft a new profile in the wake of a recession. my question is what's hollister. >> well, you know, not the demographics. >> that's how old i am. >> no. no. >> you're younger than me. >> mike, did you know what hollister was? >> yes, because i have teenage boys who know teenage girls who wear those clothes. >> there's the equation. >> now i'm in the loop. i feel very informed. >> awesome. >> you have teenage boys, maybe you'll understand, too. >> wait a while. really. trust me. wait. all right. good morning from the roof, everybody. you can see it's beautiful behind me. notice how quiet and still it is. pier 9 right there, the flag barely moving. hey, i went to school yesterday. i know what you're saying, you probably needed i

winner of the bunch is abercrombie & fitch out of favor for a while but a winner this year up 25%.isse upgraded it. david: my daughter recently worked there. all in the family. nicole, thank you very much. >>> buying low and selling high is one of the old axioms in the in investing. few get it right. will per ross has a habit of betting well on distressed assets. he invested in bank of ireland in 2011 when nobody would touch it. earlier this week he sold part of his stake triple than what he paid for it. where does he see opportunity next, in fox business exclusive, wilbur ross chairman and ceo, a good friend of ours. good to see you. >> hello, david. david: you get the figure right? tripled your investment. you held on a big chunk of it so you think it has a future. >> we kept 60% of the stock back. we only took off the table our original investment. david: that is beautiful. how often do you get that right? >> often enough to keep me in ties and suits, a little more than that as well. how often, looking for a distressed asset you think has a future, what sort variables do you lik

barnes & noble, rite aid, cigna jewelers and even abercrombie and fitch. with all due trop those companies and their employee, not exactly the usual suspects of outperformance. biggest losers so far this year, staples, container stores as well. what is going on here? jan rodgers inherited david nelson's spot and body. good to see you as well. i'm not bashing. rite aid had problems years ago. stock's done well. jewelry stores face tough times. cigna stock, okay. what do you make of the older schools, barnes & noble, leading the retail charge? >> i say when you quit shooting yourself in the foot things get better. if you're somebody like barnes & noble, you've decided to pull back from nook, do what you do. you're doing more games, educational toys. that stuff. that helps your stock for a while. because you're not doing the things that were damaging your stock, like giving awayate of money on the nook. but i don't they changes the fact you're in the most competitive place in the world and the internet will be a big problem going forward. another good kashgs

. >> and it's only getting worse, admits hawaii's governor, neil abercrombie. >> not only is it more visible, there are greater numbers, and the seriousness of it. >> reporter: to that end, aber crombie has crotted aionc ill on homelessness, trying to get people off of the beaches and into transitional housing. >> we are trying to rehabilitate apartments, for example, that have been abandoned and getting people into shelters. >> easier said than done, according to the director of the health center. >> the saying goes, the longer you're homeless, the harder it is to be placed into how doing. twinks, she has been there for a decade. and people are stuck in the mindset. this is home to me. >> for thousands of people, this is what home in hawaii looks like, under the streets, along the freeways, and on the shadows of the shore. oahu, hawaii. >> we're following breaking news coming out of spain. there are local media reports saying that there has been a plane crash off of the canary islands. the reports say that the plane simply fell into the sea. no word on the number of passengers or th

. >> as opposed to abercrombie & fitch or american eagle outfitters. >> exactly. of a free simple?ctually. >> abercrombie & fitch on one side, anthropology on the other, urban outfitters is in the middle? >> i think it is funkier than anthropology. >> anthropology is more of a mom store. >> it does skew older. >> not quite chico yet. >> it is nowhere near chico. i like this perspective. let's talk about the new activewear concept they have introduced. you're looking out without walls. the company came up with earnings today that the estimates. they have been having trouble figuring out what niche they should be and. they haven't having trouble with fashion over the past year. specifically the urban outfitters brand. thing they are doing, incubating, perhaps to spin off, but it is a crowded market here. hleisure.en dubbed at you know this, you see women all the time in new york city wearing their workout clothes because they are comfortable. >> thank god it became acceptable to walk around in nothing except for black spray on pants. >> ok. the point is that this growth has been outp

abercrombie is up 6%. they have upgraded that stop. a nice 6% gain for abercrombie.ed to have jcpenney on deathwatch. up 6%. 848. after this break, the man who wrote the book. he will give us an inside look on who the man is reinventing our new shop and live on a daily basis. mr. amazon. the guy who wrote the book next. ♪ there's this kid. coach calls her a team player. she's kind of special. she makes the whole team better. he's the kind of player that puts the puck, horsehide, bullet. right where it needs to be. coach calls it logistics. he's a great passer. dependable. a winning team has to have one. somebody you can count on. somebody like my dad. this is my dad. somebody like my mom. my grandfather. i'm very pround of him. her. them. iwe don't back down. we only know one direction: up so we're up early. up late. thinking up game-changing ideas, like this: dozens of tax free zones across new york state. move here. expand here. or start a new business here... and pay no taxes for 10 years. with new jobs, new opportunities and a new tax free plan. there's only one

most of these stores like abercrombie, a sears, have pretty good size of the debt load.s they have been downgraded and a lot of cases so the borrowing costs have gone from 3% up that 10 percent online or in the store that is pressure. most will go through bankruptcy and reemerge as the online company. that is our view. neil: this could be a barometer or indicator. that maybe it's the consumer was hiccuping this recovery could be fading. >> i agree. i think it is fading a little bit. look at housing will slip and i think retail stores in consumers are getting tapped out. there is not a lot of mortgage money i am not sure where it comes from the banks for consumers digest dulce it happening -- i'd just don't see it happening. >> like obamacare $500 months more than they planned not sure what they are getting that definitely will crimp the spending style. neil: we had the up prior architect that is not all americans but a small percentage? >> i say no and i also tell you the average household wages have live from 54,000 down at 50. i think people will spend less in general

coupled with the fact, aeropostale, abercrombie, american eagle, they're fighting a tough winter. in there. liz: we have breaking news on godaddy. the domain website is filing for an ipo or at least it's investigating the possibility of it. they will be interviewing underwriters in coming weeks. this could be a big one. largest seller of domain names out there. david: bob parsons, founder of godaddy, ex-marine he is comfortable in saying stands to benefit enourmously. he stepped back a little bit from management of the company but has been the guiding hand all along. we'll see how the charities divvy up very successful company. that is exciting news. liz: it is. they have matured from the early stages trying to get attention to becoming a supporter of small business and all of that realm there. [closing bell ringing] here we go. the bells ring and close the session for the week on this friday afternoon. we look at stock market that is finishing for the most part to the downside although off the earlier lows of the session. at one point we were down more than 60 points. but the dow

. >> abercrombie is up 40%. it was down in the dumps. a lot of things you were talking about.y had shopped themselves. >> they didn't shop themselves. they wanted -- people wanted them to. but they didn't. >> back channel shop. can we say that? >> you can say it. now, say asinine on top of it. >> there it is. >> j.j., good to see you. thanks for coming by. >>> still ahead, find yourself scrolling through your facebook feed and never clicking on the footwear, or ads, there's a company that schayes you're being influenced, even without that click. here in philadelphia you can access a philly cheesesteak anytime, day or night. just like you can access geico anytime, day or night. there is only one way to celebrate this unique similarity. witness the cheesesteak shuffle. ♪ cheesesteak, cheesesteak ♪ ♪ it's the cheesesteak shuffle! huh! ♪ ♪ every day, all day, cheesesteak, cheesesteak! ♪ ♪ every night, all night cheesesteak, cheesesteak! ♪ ♪ 9 a.m. cheesesteak! ♪ 2 p.m. cheesesteak! ♪ 4 a.m. cheesesteak! ♪ any time (ruh!) >>geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or m

. >> you see that rationalization teen side with the closure of abercrombie's, for example.is where will you see it, on the weaker fringes, we'll it bleed into a corner retailer like -- core retailer like gap? we are seeing less of that. all i will be told once we get out of the cold while there -- a lot will be told once we get out of the cold weather. >> mall traffic is not what it once was. you have companies like sbarro filing for bankruptcy because people are not going to the malls as much. is onemall traffic issue issue, but it is not like it has fallen in half. it is down. the traffic that is off-mall, which accounts for the great majority of retail sales, that is strong, down a point or two, but not dramatically. the issue is that is too much apparel space. craig johnson, and julie hyman, thank you. we will be back in two minutes on "in the loop." ♪ >> entertainment companies are stepping up their dealmaking, with many looking to get a hold into the online video market. cristina alesci has more on recent activity and what might be next. entertainment companies on the

two embattled retailers first abercrombie & fitch gaining ground after credit suisse up a gra upgradeder standard & poor's raletz ised i stable from negative. a programming note in the next half hour in a cnbc "squawk on the street" talks live with former sachs chairman and former ceo steve sadove who is currently on the board. both those shares up 6% on the day. back over to you. ? all right, dom, chanksthanks a . >>> the president will propose changes to the tax code in his budget plan 2015 but will shifting tax benefits to the middle-class, do they have a chance to pass in the house? we'll ask it to barney frank. >>> we will have as jcpenney goes on a tear this morning on its credit outlook boost the former ceo of sachs and jcpenney board member, steve sadove will join us next on post nine. he could be the next ceo of jcpenney. ♪ [ indistinct shouting ] [ male announcer ] time and sales data. split-second stats. [ indistinct shouting ] ♪ it's so close to the options floor... [ indistinct shouting, bell dinging ] ...you'll bust your brain box. ♪ all on thinkorswim from td ameritrade.

we have two winners in that space, abercrombie making a nice move of 2.5%, and revenge of brick and mortarbuy can haying in, maybe are sold for brick and mortar after all. note lois lerner e-mails from the irs so why is the irs dragging its feet on handing them over. irs commissioner has even been threatened with contempt. joining us is the american center for law, why are they protecting her? why has anyone circled the wagons around lois lerner? >> she became the center, the focal point of initiating this particular targeting scandal and this targeting scandal. it was her leadership that presented this and she has a series of e-mails, some of which have been released, others have not been. imagine the ones that have not been what those might say but the ones that have been released showed this is politically motivated by lois lerner and people higher up than low as lerner. she was the key implemented and it did not originate and they are very hesitant, i used to work for the irs office of chief counsel. the reality is we have to be aware why congress is pushing so hard. if we don't have t

stacy mentioned abercrombie said 25% of its total sales coming from direct to consumer.ix we're going to have to get used to, and you're going to need to serve the customer in store and online. you cannot neglect in store because they're still going to the stores as well and they expect it. web groom something a big thing. we browse online but we go to the stores to buy it, feel it, try it, and touch it. >> e-commerce is taking a large part of the consumer budget. it's 5% of total retail sales. the important thing is we have some longer structural changes going on. we have a population that's basically flattening out and an older aging population. so the mix of goods and services that are going to be demanded by those -- by those consumers are going to impact how we deliver and how retailers will respond. >> jack, you're absolutely right. if you think about some of the strip malls maybe in the neighborhood as people are driving around, the turnover they have seen from traditional kind of retail stores to things like, you know, to health clubs, smoothie shops, all of thos

. >> to thatnd abercrombie created a council of homelessness charged at getting people off the treats and into housing. >> we feel that acting, trying to rehabilitate houses. easier said than done according to the director of the community health center. >> the saying goes that the longer you are homeless, the harder it is to place into housing. >> twinkle has been there for a decade, saying this is home for me. >> solutions are hard to come by. for thousands, this is what homes in hawaii looks like - on the streets, under the freeways and in the shadows along the shore. >> the disappearance of a young homeless girl raises questions about the safety of children and families at shelters. that's next in the series "homeless in america", coming up in an hour. >> the chinese tech company creating living cells using 3d bioprinter. the company says the cells are alive after nine days, and proves their available under 3 g printing conditions and the liveability of the cells has been improved. del walters joins us with a look at what we are following. >> we are following the meeting between p

. >> if you are an abercrombie and you are up against the h & ms and you reposition hollister to be moreh that or is that such a big move that it's hard to undo if it doesn't work out? >> i think it's a hard move to undo. i don't know that you want to take the cataclysmic jumps and maybe you want to do it in a category, expand or add a new category but i don't think you want to reinvent yourself and be in trouble. >> the t.j. maxxs of the world are setting an example. do other retailers need to move into it or is it about knowing your customer and income group? >> i haven't seen macy's numbers -- >> it's been outperforming. >> they have a great experience in store. fantastic inventory management, they know who they are and they are not overpromotional. >> inventory management is always the key, isn't it? >> it's the key in every retail business. >> it gets boring but that's where it goes. >> if you want to look at a retail company that outperforms over and over again it comes down to understanding their inventory and controlling the cash and you'll see it in the margins and they can affo

. >> abercrombie repositioning hollister all this time trying to be more like h & m more fast fashion. it will be more interesting to see if the particultactical ter help the overstored environment. >> maybe they are no longer going to go commando over hollister. >> all right. well, i guess that brings that block to a close. >> they are talking about the idea of a management secession and we kind of want that. jeffries is in the wall of shame. just kind of feel like -- >> still. >> also like mason fashion -- fashion backward comments about -- >> yes. >> -- people and just left me cold. i don't know about how you felt. >> i didn't really focus on them as much. >> just put it this way, they were not politically correct, how about that? >> yes, i do recall that part of those comments. >> one thing h&r block, the average tax refund so far this year $3,034 up 3% from last year and 48 million of americans already have it in direct deposit and i wonder how much of that is going to go to a cash register in the next, i don't know, four to six weeks. >> spending power. i had pinnacle foods on,

. >> rachel, abercrombie and fitch is hear tonight, striking a pose. >> it is nice not to have to worryt. >> it was hard. wait, what did i do with the body? i'm not used to this. >> this is my first modeling thing, yeah. it was cool. >> all part of a & s campaign. photos splashed on stores across the country. >> it is a cool thing that my mom in riverside can call me and say, baby, i saw you at the mall. my mom is already begging for one of the posters to put in her living room. >> my friend, zoe, text me. she sae , guess what, i'm looking at your face. >> former models, including jennifer lawrence. >> channing tatum, jennifer smith. i did my homework, yo. >> each aundred million dollars. >> taylor twist. whole she bang. i don't know the rejects though. were there any risin stars that didn't make it? >> a & s new line is available now. >> who is the best dressed this year's oscar red carpet? >> no one want to be like, oh -- >> the funny lady will be 44 on march 3rd. emmy winner patricia heaton will laugh along for her 56th beep-bop-boop-bop boop-beep. [monotone] she says, "switch to pro

." >> can you imagine if you walked into abercrombie & fitch? >> i'm sure the president has walked in. betty liu, thank u so much. let's get to morning movers. 59% in the premarket trade, they make a drug that has been put on hold. piper jaffray cut the stock to neutral from overweight. they said there is no pipeline at this biotech firm to fall back on if the fda decides destroyed is unsafe. not -- decides destroyed is unsafe. not good news if you are a geron shareholder. >> governor chris christie's and administration is blocked tesla motors -- >> speaking of one-stop shops. ,> i'm having a tough time guys, wrapping my head around this concept, that if you live in new jersey, you can't buy a tesla because somehow when the company sells directly -- >> got to go through middlemen, apparently. i don't know the details of this law. >> it is like saturn. >> philadelphia or new york tesla dealers are going, this is the best thing -- >> this us government just getting in the way, i'm sorry. , americanry quickly eagle also falling. morgan stanley cutt