joseph a bank one of men's wearhouse and men's wearhouse wanted it back.just of a bank on the phone, mr. harrison from financo. -- whether this deal is a defensive move aimed at fending off any further overtures from when -- from men's wearhouse? is that the case? >> good morning. first of all, i totally disagree with what he said. you will note in the press retained inere february 20 12, 1 of the first companies we called it was -- eddie bauer, because we believe they fit with -- a fit with eddie bauer and joseph bank was superior. it was a growth business. taken over by golden gate after bankruptcy. all of the attributes of that joseph the bank has in terms of managementent -- the -- >> ok, but gilbert, you represent joseph a bank. i understand that within your long and lengthy career. are you saying eddie bauer is not a brand that has been a train wreck for a decade? >> it has had its problems. they hired the guy who built also -- into and tremendous opening. he and his merchants are great people and great marketing people. be team is going to fantastic

men's wearhouse is bigger. they figure they can take eddie bauer on and do a combination, it makes itself eger and in that way it protects itself from any hostile move from men's wearhouse. today we saw investors confused by all of this. maybe the activist investors in wearhouseand men's thought, look, this is a sweetheart deal. for are buying eddie bauer a hefty price, but in exchange, they get some protection from the aggressor. >> does it add value? is the board being responsible? we are would say, yes, being responsible because we think we can get a bigger price for men's wearhouse and maybe this is just a negotiating position to do that. when you look at the release today, and you read the conditions of the eddie bauer deal, it says if jos. a. bank gets a better deal from another company, men's wearhouse, or it could back out of the deal with eddie bauer. so it leaves the door open for a possible merger between bank and wearhouse. the board would say we are piecing short-term investors by buyback. if you w

banks and the men's wearhouse. the battle continues.e have more right here on "taking stock." ♪ >> michigan congressman dave camp has a plan to overhaul the tax code. it is going under the microscope. one of the lobbyists represents the municipal law industry. the bloomberg trade organization is an associate member. let's talk about what the dave camp plan suggests should happen with the amount of money people receive from their municipal bonds. >> there are a few provisions that address municipal bonds. one of the provisions that i would like to talk about first is a tax. they want to raise the tax rate from 25% to 35%. taxpayers at $400,000 or $450,000 depending on whether you are married or single. >> if you are an individual and your gross is $400,000 and you are a married couple your gross is $450,000, you would be subject to an additional 10% on income that you receive above that amount from municipal bonds. >> not just municipal bonds, bonds, although they are included. the issue is that investors are taxed more. when investors a

men's wearhouse has been trying to buy joseph a bank. would make them so big that men's wearhouse could not afford to buy them. some of the headlines are saying that joseph a bank has gotten permission to actually get out of the deal to buy eddie bauer. willing to talk to men's wearhouse again. the latest bid was $63.50 per share. joseph a bank shares are rallying up. wantsks like jos. a. bank to hold out more but they're getting closer to a deal. >> thanks. my next guest spent seven seasons playing for four different nfl franchises. when injury cut michael stone's career short in 2007 he switched his focus to an alternative franchise. he founded the professional athlete franchise initiative, a program for retired athletes. also joining us, the president of title boxing club, john rotche. john is also a former football coach with the university of michigan. thank you for being here. what was the injury? >> i was playing for the giants and had a hip injury in the preseason. week five i decided to have the surgery. that's when i found out

a tremendous amount of scrutiny not just from its investor base that men's wearhouse has taken this aga to the delaware courts where it had it has accused joseph a bank of measures that are inappropriate and defending itself against hostile bids by men's wearhouse. accusingrhouse is joseph a bank management team and board of putting up high barriers to a deal such as a poisoned pill, such as creating a deal with eddie power to make it too big for men's warehouse to take over. all of those things men's wearhouse says is evidence that bqank is breaching its fiduciary it is by not coming to the table. joseph a bank is forced to come to the table at this point and reconsider talks. >> how much more could joseph a bank really debt out of men's wearhouse? >> my sources say that joseph a bank probably would not have invited men's wearhouse back to the table if it were not entertaining a deal at $65 per share. at whichs the price the parties can come back together. of course that would mean that joseph a bank would have to walk away from its yield to i eddiebauer and pay a breakup fee which is

wearhouse is going down today.oseph a bank has agreed to by eddie bauer in part to try to thwart the bid from men's wearhouse. investors asking, where does men's wearhouse go from here? as they asked the question, they sell the shares. this is unbelievable. the banking business is going to pot. the federal government is going to allow u.s. banks to get a cut of the legal pot business in colorado. but it will have conditions attached. peter cook has more on the new guidelines just released peter, i have to say, this is pretty stunning. i mean, it is amazing when you think how far this industry has come in such a short amount of time. the banking issue was holding it back. how might it change now? >> this is a big step forward for the legal side of the pot business and a significant development. as you know all too well, retailers in colorado last month -- started selling recreational marijuana to users for the first time in years, decades. even though it has been decriminalized, the sale and use is still a violation

but it is obviously battling back and forth with men's wearhouse.characterize it as a multidimensional chess game but it is the two players and then bringing in golden gate to mw.ort the original bid for now we have eddie bauer and there. offere same time, the from bank is a tender offer to buy back 60% of its own showers. beis there no argument to made that these three companies should just end alone? >> they could all easily stand alone. eddie bauer's turnaround which is quite early could be accomplished in its own right. is not ine supposedly any rush to monetize its investment from five years ago. if this do an ipo root falls apart. it is a definitive agreement. agreementdefinitive -- they have been abandoned before. warehouse'sen's next move? >> if you read their release from 45 minutes ago, they are evaluating their options. that is what they always say. move inld do a counter this chess game or they could back out. we don't expect a timely resolution in any case. to be a couple more moves before this thing sees the end of the day. >> eddie ba

played where to -- hard to get with men's wearhouse.anks had tried to buy men's wearhouse. setting off. but down on one knee for eddie bauer. eddie bauer practically invented the down coat in the 1930's. now owned by golden gate capital. the retail veteran advising joseph banks on this deal. he told us this was the first company they looked at two years ago. >> we believe they fit with eddie bauer. joseph bank was superior. it is a growth business. it had been taken over by golden gate after bankruptcy. all of the attributes joseph management,terms of they have two of the best -- >> you represent joseph a bank in your long career. are you saying eddie bauer is not a brand that has been a train wreck for a decade? >> it has had problems. egeck, the guye built columbia and north basin to a terrific company. he and his people are great marketing people. this team is going to be fantastic. >> what is eddie bauer doing correctly now that makes it so attractive to joseph bank? >> they have gone back to their roots as an outdoor company, as a

scarlet fu there on men's wearhouse. moving and shaking this hour, defense secretary chuck hagel who wants to cut the army to its smallest size since before world war ii -- the pentagon releases its proposed budget today. hagel called for cutting the army from about 570,000 troops to as few as 440,000. he wants to eliminate the a-10 attack planes for the air force. the budget is likely to run into and theon in congress defense department. we have a great program ahead for you today, including the former new york governor. with theined forces myspace cofounder to help you get a job. president onmer the run following last week's violence. we will again with what is next for the country. stay "in the loop." ♪ >> the manhunt continues for former ukraine president viktor yanukovych. the interim government has issued an arrest warrant for him. the u.s. is working with the european union on a financial bailout and inviting russia to participate. joining us now is republican congressman mike turner. he is also a top member of th

you talk about men's wearhouse, joseph a bank. forust to make clear viewers what i am talking about, because it is part of the bloomberg way, there is no such thing as a merger. >> it is one the company acquiring another. >> was it a good purchase? >> no, investors are reacting pretty negatively. shares in the premarket were dropping for joseph a bank. it looks a little bit confusing. bankmonths ago joseph a made an aggressive quasi-offer. now they are going into a completely different business, the casual down market. >> i didn't know eddie bauer still existed. >> it was not a publicly traded company. they got the listed when it was taken private -- got delisted when it was taken private. a banks is leaving itself out. we can back away with this deal with eddie bauer if someone comes in and tries to bias for a price we would be willing to sell out. it is giving itself an out. obviously this supports the toument that this is a play gain leverage against the men's wearhouse side of the equation. also it is trying to message to inve

men's wearhouse is toughening up its hostile takeover bid for jos a banks yesterday, mens wearhouse upped its offer to buy its rival by $6 per share -- to $63.50 per share from $57.50. that represents a premium over jos a banks closing price yesterday of $60.04. there is one caveat: jos a banks has to abandon its planned $825 million acquisition of eddie bauer. this new offer is good until close of business on march 12th. in what is being characterized as an attempt to change its rigidly traditional reputation -- honda has appointed a woman to its board of directors for the first time. the japanese automaker has also promoted a foreigner to a top post. previously, japanese companies have been criticized for promoting only japanese men. prime minister shinzo abe has made it a priority to elevate women as a way to help the stagnant japanese economy. honda is the first major japanese company to act upon that suggestion. tesla is expected to come out this week with a details on a new battery factory. the electric car company's ceo says it's so big, he's calling the supersized plant the 'gigaf

bank has been fighting off a hostile takeover bid from rival men's wearhouse. the eddie bauer buy can be canceled if jos. a. bank's board accepts the bid from men's wearhouse. jos a bank stock climbed 36 percent last week.. home depot and lowes are attracting activists. they blame the home improvement stores for killing billions of honey bees. the activsts delivered petitions with thousands of signatures demanding the retailers stop selling neon-ick o-tinoid pesticides. it's estimated up to $30 billion dollars in u.s. agriculture depends on honeybees. bees are dying by the billions according to beekeepers. home depot told first business: "we're more than happy to provide customers with alternative products" lowes did not return our request for a comment in time for our broadcast. the faculty union at university of illinois' chicago campus is set to strike. classes at the university will be cancelled today and tomorrow after 95% of the faculty voted to authorize walkouts. the unions have been pushing for a new contract since july of 20-12. the faculty is asking

they were taken from a wearhouse on howard street.hael wong, the owner of the wearhouse, was cited. investigators say he was selling the fins to restaurants which violates california law. some of the shark fins were being sold for around $200 a pound. >>> a school district in napa is offering money to try to find whomever burglarized a school. a laptop and other items stolen from a classroom at the river school on old sonoma road between the 7th and 9th of this month. now a reward of 500 bucks. for information leading to an arrest and conviction. anyone with information is asked to contact knapp police. >>> you could say that true romance never dies no matter how old you are. >> i would like to believe that is true. two couples who believe fate brought brought them together have a good reason to celebrate valentine's day weekend and they tell don ford how they keep love alive. >> herman and dorothy have been married for 67 years. >> january 12 of 1947. we were married. >> wow. >> and it has been a fabulous marriage. we both just had o

men'sre is a 10% stake in wearhouse and a smaller stake in men's wearhouse. consolidation.the banks. they are consolidating. you look at strip malls. we overbilled in the last decade. >> kind of like julie saying, how do these people work together? maybe they do not work together. maybe there is so much consolidation that some of these stores are going to close. >> absolutely. >> how much capacity is there? neilu will have to ask black why he is eating the poison pill of eddie bauer. julie, it is a technique that i use, called exaggeration to make a point. >> i realized you did that. this drama?f why not just agreed to do it? >> and the broadband networks. terms of a possible deal. netflix would join companies like facebook and others who are paying for the access, and we also learned that at&t says it is still in talks with networks about network connection, and this is very interesting, because on the one hand, you have the broadband connection, and on the other hand, at&t keeps saying in another two years, it is going to be a game changer. you're going to be able to watc

men's wearhouse came back with a pacman bid of its own.r of imminence capital has been involved with both. deciding eventually to go after jos. a. banks. two directors that are up. jos. a. bank entering into a deal that would stop men's wearhouse saying we're going to buy eddie bauer. men's wearhouse comes out this morning, 63 billion in cash, we're willing to go up to 65 a share if you allow us to do due diligence and of course if you drop the eddie bauer bid. i'm stold of some favorable reviews of a letter they sent. they've filed a complaint in delaware court of what they would call jos a. banks willingness to harm its own shareholders by entering into the eddie bauer transaction and not agreeing to this one. it's an interesting state of affairs. and as we've said many times, notice men's wearhouse stock price being up and up nicely. investors continue to applaud what they see as potential deals and in this case that's why perhaps it wasn't that big of a surprise that men's wearhouse -- 63.50 is a big number. that's got to be a number w

bank to thumb its nose at men's wearhouse? >> no way, becky. we were first karr contacted, eddie bauer in february 2012, two years ago, when we were retained to start the acquisition search. this was one of the first companies we contacted, actually, one of two. and say golden gate bridge owns them, had just bought it recently. they were in the process of turning them down. we talked to them several times during the process and finally a month or so ago they agreed to talk to us. it's a great deal. and you couple this deal with the tender offer, which i'm sure you've seen it, $65 a share, it's a win-win situation for the company and its shareholders. >> what i don't understand is i could see the men's wearhouse joesest a. banks deal lining up beautifully in terms of the synergies, in terms of the overlap. eddie bauer to me is a very different business than jous he a. banks. what do these companies together look like? >> these companies have a potential to be a diversified apparel retailer with huge growth potential over many years. the men's we

checking shares of men's wearhouse and joseph a. bank, joseph a. up 50 cents, men's wearhouse down, look at that, a drop of more than 5%. >>> well, freeing the bluebird. nearly ten million shares of twitter will be set free tomorrow as the lock-up period for shares owned by non-executive twitter employees expires. nicole petallides is at the new york stock exchange with the details on how the microblogging site is moving. >> reporter: well, this is a big deal, sandra, when you start to talk about shares being unlocked, basically, where the insiders -- and in this case the non-executive employees -- will be able to finally sell off some shares. you remember the ipo, we've seen twitter under $40, other $70 -- over $70. right now it's at 57.40, up about 1.5%, so it is moving higher. but when you have shares unlocked to this extent, it it could cause shares to wobble on whether it's now or in the weeks to come because the amount is 9.9 million shares. that's roughly $565 million worth, and that pales in comparison to the next unlock period in may. so w

the battle that keeps on going, men's wearhouse we think it's offer for juice of a bank. they rose their offer 10% to $1.8 billion, and could go .igher it is a battle that began in october when joseph a bank offered to buy men's wearhouse. out in silicon valley, the word is going on with the markets, it is time to cash in and go public. ipo to considering an just a number of companies .onsidering this ipo path with us now is jon erlichman. he is in los angeles. he broke the roku story. david menlo.is david, why is this happening now? >> the prime example is what happened with facebook and whats coming upf the blue with a valuation of $16 billion. anything along that kind of technology, people think they can get 2x, 3x of what they thought. new fundingived back in may. any idea why they did the ipo now? >> it may have less to do with those vc's meeting their money back now. it is more about the opportunity resented as the business gets bigger. we are seeing roku and the apple cast, ae, google crone lot of these streaming devices, so the market is getting bigger quickly. ou

herbalife, men's wearhouse, sony and apple are all corporations that have faced threats and badgering by large investment firms. soaring college costs have many students questioning whether it pays to go for higher education. a new pew study says yes, and the earnings gap has never been wider. newly-released data from the research center says that millennials with a college degree made about $17-thousand more in 20-12 than their peers with just a high-school diploma. still to come: why this chart looks eerily familiar to some traders... plus .... team usa... how olympians go from being well known athletes to bankable icons. and, who better to bring us tax tips then the pro's at h&r block. a senior tax preparer joins us right after this break! i'm going to pass chemistry, and i'll take it from there. i'm going to do what makes me happy. i'm going to work hard. be independent. live large. make the most of every opportunity. i knew i wanted to go to college. but figuring out how to pay for it? i didn't have a clue. the u.s. department of education has over $100 billion. and that's a lot

and, jos a bank rejects a $63.50 per share offer from men's wearhouse but is willing to consider higher bid. trader chris gersch of altimus capital joins us on this friday morning. happy friday to you chris. >>happy friday. >>we definitely saw those yields move on yellen yesterday. what do you anticipate for today? >>i think that we are going to see continued yield movement. what is really strange about those yellen comments came outyou had yield to the downside when in the equity market we closed at all time highs yesterday. that's sort of a conundrum. you don't expect yields to fall with all time highs. but i really think that one going lower and one going higher will not survive through the trading day today. look for yields to either go down and the market to follow or vice versa. >>we have a gdp number coming out today. how is the market setting up for that reaction? >>the market is setting up to the high side. the s&p futures after the close of the equity market there was a lot of market on close to the upsideit closed on its highs 15 minutes after in the futures market. that tell

men's wearhouse says it could raise its offer, and joseph a. bank says the company is in talks to buy eddie bauer. no deal imminent as of yet. hover hour first of the month or at least the first workday of the month, you know what that means, auto sales. january sales are out, things looking a whole -- well, let's say they're looking bitter. i thought that said better. bitter for the month of january with big storms across the u.s. really the automakers. send it down to jeff flock in illinois with all the nebs. >> reporter: >> reporter: bitterly cold weather in the mid and storms in the southeast, so not that great either. we're behind the wheel with our old friend woody who has just opened a brand new dealership here in naperville. take a look at the best and the worst of this month. we're on the back lot of the dealership now. hey, woody. take a look at who won and who lost. chrysler is a big winner, up 8%. vw down 19%, so not so hot. kind of a messy january. take a look at trucks. we are in a, what are we in, a gmc sierra? >> the all-new 201

bank and men's wearhouse. >> i sent him to all those places. so i went out with him.uits or jackets. no question about it. in all my research through the years. best --ng like a well well-dressed man. i agree. >> i think the look is a little different. they are finally finding out super cool. you can dress it with a prince, like i am wearing, and with a tie. but the shape has to be a little narrow, a little more shapely. the panther little shorter. are modern fit -- the pants little shorter. a more modern fit. >> very high, exclusive men's suits -- thousands of dollars. 2000 -- >> and then you have men's wearhouse. >> and nothing in between. we thought it would be a cool way, since we are all interested it -- in it, and we put a team -- and weust to do are very happy. >> aside from the price, what will be different about your suits? >> the big difference is, we make different fit. a little narrower lapel, almost like a european fit. when you go to europe, i know with my wife, she says, these men dress really great. be short can never enough. >> are you saying men in a

consumer staples is helping lead the way in the rally. .he dow jones is up .7% we are watching men's wearhouse is "lunch money" bloomberg television and streaming live. video is the story. officials in an australian town are devising people to get out due to a fire in a local coal mine. the blaze has been burning for three weeks. it has been spewing ash and smoke. officials say it could last another week and a half. people have been complaining of chest pains and headaches. protests around the world to send a message to egypt. demonstrators in washington and elsewhere showing their support for a group of al jazeera journalists on trial in egypt. the journals have been held since december. egypt said they were aiding a terrorist organization by reporting on the muslim brotherhood. drought stricken california finally getting some rain, and lots of it. dump one forecast to inch hour was hitting southern california yesterday. yesterday was the first there was an inch or more of rain in downtown los angeles since october 2011. a mixed blessing. barren hillsides are now subject to mudslides. john th

lex men's wearhouse has raised its bid for joseph a banks and offered to further increase the price if the bank agrees to terminate the deal to buy eddie bauer. president obama is showing governors today that the decision whether to approve the keystone pipeline will be made in a couple of months. they are looking to build a pipeline -- mark zuckerberg speaking at the mobile world conference in barcelona, he says he's looking three -- seeking three to five phone companies as partners in an effort to connect billions of people to the internet that do not yet have access. >> thank you very much. activist investor carl icahn posted a letter criticizing ebay. trish regan spoke with him and what did he have to say? lex he had a lot to say. to him at 3:00 and the letter comes out and criticizes the board for its conflict of interest. he singled out to members -- scott cookssen and of into it, saying both of these guys have inherent conflicts of actrest will stop >> just up and give people the lay of the land. investment.as a big >> over a billion dollars. paypal beike to see spun off from th

suggested they made the offer for eddie bauer to get a higher price for men's wearhouse.upports the deal. i think now we can go ahead and let those jokes flochlt you're going to love the way you look when you buy one suit and get three for free, on and on and on and on. kelly and carl, back to you. >> you guarantee it. >> i guarantee it. >> courtney reagan joining us from new york. thanks. when we come back. nutrition labels you probably know getting a makeover with these brand-new big labels replacing older smaller ones. question is, is it good for business? especially companies that promote organic healthier food. we'll talk to the ceo of annie's in just a moment. orbiting the moon in 1971. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation. because it offers a superior level of protection. and because usaa's commitment to serve current and former military members and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve. can you start tomorrow? yes s

the retailer agreed to meet with men's wearhouse to discuss a potential merger.alks marks the latest twist in a five-month takeover battle between the two purveyors of discount suits. it started with jos. a. bank offering a takeover bid. it's incredible how this saga is playing out, all for some suits. number one, deckard. dropping 12% today after forecasting unexpected fourth-quarter loss. analysts had estimated a profit of $.10 a share. here we are at the close of trading. closing out the day in positive territory. earlier in the hour nasdaq closing in the red just a touch. the s&p closing at a record for the second day, 1859 on the s&p. in the face of negative economic news. gdp coming in for the fourth quarter at 2.4%, far less than the initial estimate of 3.2%. nonetheless, investors cheering the market on today, up on the dow. looks like most sectors were trading higher. talking, evenbeen though there is skepticism about what is going on with the economy and how much it may or may not improve, at least the market -- and a lot of economist commentary, people

joseph a bank has refused the latest offer but it keeps the door open on making a deal with men's wearhouse

men's wearhouse is slightly better up 2%. >> great to see you, kayla. >>> brace yourself, after what seems like an already brutal winter, groundhog punxsutawney phil is predicting six more weeks of the season. he saw his shadow in the traditional groundhog ceremony yesterday attracting booze from the pennsylvania crowd. legend says if he sees his shadow, winter lasts longer. if he doesn't, spring comes early. what's the validity of groundhog predictions? they have been called into question. the winter weather is still expected to continue today as a winter storm warning for new york and new jersey is in effect. joining us for more, jen carfagno, meteorologist at the weather channel from philadelphia. punxsutawney phil has spoken, jen, do you concur? >> reporter: well, i was there yesterday, ross. actually, i was there in punxsutawney. it was raining there just like it is in philadelphia today, but amazingly when he came out of his burrow, i think there was a chance he saw his shadow. he did, obviously. but i tell you what, it is a great, fun event. you need that hope by early spring

. >> trust me, that's a nicer suit than the ones they sell over at men's wearhouse. >>> coming up, we'll have more of the in the volatility. we're going to have a squawk disrupter. if you wish you could experience a movie anywhere on the go, we have a device for you. we'll talk to the ceo right after the break. but before we do that, how much more snow and ice could the country be expected to get this week? tomorrow is going to be bad and then apparently the weekend gets bad again. let's get the national weather forecast from the weather channel's julie martin. >> guys, more snow on the way. this is just the second of three storms expected this week. so for today, we had those winter alerts all over the map, stretching from the midwest all the way into the east. we've got winter storm warnings in places like boston and cleveland and kansas city where we could see upwards of a foot of snow from this system. already starting to see the snow fill in here in the midwest. heading up towards kansas city. oklahoma city kind of a mix for you this morning. all of this quickly filling in across th