Business Briefs – November 16, 2016

Drug Prices Don’t Budge Even After Pressure From Congress

WASHINGTON (AP) – Congress’s routine of publicly shaming drug company executives over high prices works no better than a placebo: It may make some people feel better, but it doesn’t treat the problem.

In the last two years, House and Senate committees issued more than a dozen subpoenas to price-hiking drugmakers, collecting hundreds of thousands of documents and berating executives for more than 16 hours of public hearings.

But a review by The Associated Press of the list prices of nearly 30 brand-name medications and generic versions targeted by congressional investigators shows most haven’t budged since coming under federal scrutiny, according to figures from Truven Health Analytics.

Target, After Solid 3Q, Gets Cheery About Year-End Season

NEW YORK (AP) – Target breezed past Wall Street expectations for the third quarter, with help from a solid back-to-school season, and raised a key sales outlook for the critical end-of-the-year shopping season.

The cheap-chic retailer still saw declines in store traffic and in its central sales measure, but they were less than expected and Target raised its annual profit outlook.

Target has been trying to get back on track and address the issues that dragged down its business this summer.

Lowe’s Results Miss Street Expectation; Cuts Annual Outlook

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Lowe’s was beset by hefty charges and meager traffic in its stores for most of the third quarter, and its profit suffered for it.

A day after rival Home Depot posted banner results and boosted its outlook for the year, Lowe’s fell drastically short of Wall Street expectations and cut its annual outlook, again.

Chairman and CEO Robert Niblock said sales, after beginning slowly, had begun to recover by October.