Tiffany & Co.'s third-quarter results miss Wall Street estimates as jewelry company cuts 2012 outlook

Tiffany & Co.'s third-quarter net income fell 30 percent, stung by a higher-than-expected tax rate, ongoing economic weakness and high precious metal and diamond costs.

The jewelry company's results missed Wall Street's expectations and it cut its full-year earnings forecast.

Shares dropped $5.58, or 8.7 percent, to $58.15 in premarket trading Thursday.

For the period ended Oct. 31, the company known for its blue boxes earned $63.2 million, or 49 cents per share. That's down from $89.7 million, or 70 cents per share, a year earlier.

Analysts polled by FactSet forecast earnings of 63 cents per share.

Chairman and CEO Michael J. Kowalski said in a statement that Tiffany had expected its quarterly results would be affected by ongoing economic softness and tough year-ago comparisons. But he added that the retailer's gross margin rate of 54.4 percent — down from 57.9 percent in the prior-year period — was weaker than expected and its tax rate was higher than expected. Gross margin, a key performance metric, is the amount of each dollar in revenue a company actually keeps.

While cautious about worldwide economic conditions, Kowalski said that the company anticipates results improving during the holiday season partly because of easier year-over-year sales comparisons but also because of new stores and new products.

The holiday season is critical for retailers, as it can make up to 40 percent of stores' annual revenue.

Revenue increased 4 percent to $852.7 million from $821.8 million. Wall Street expected $858.8 million.

Sales rose 6 percent in Europe and 3 percent in the Americas region. Asia-Pacific sales climbed 2 percent, while Japan sales rose slightly. Tiffany said that its other sales jumped 73 percent as it converted five stores in the United Arab Emirates from independently-run distribution to company-run stores.

Tiffany now expects 2012 earnings of $3.20 to $3.40 per share. Its prior outlook was for earnings of $3.55 to $3.70 per share.

Analysts predict earnings of $3.59 per share.

Tiffany had 272 stores at quarter's end.

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City National Bank of Florida and its Spanish parent have four years to evaluate the Miami bank’s future ownership

City National Bank of Florida, the Miami bank purchased by Bankia (formerly Caja Madrid) of Spain in November 2008, said Wednesday that its parent has a “four-year window to evaluate alternatives” for the bank’s future ownership and will work closely with management in Miami during the process.

The Spanish government has reached and agreement with the European Union related to Spain’s financial system problems, which will result in a recapitalization of Bankia and other institutions, the bank said. The agreement calls for Bankia to sell non-core assets and its holdings outside of Spain so that Bankia will emerge with a solid capital position and be more focused on its core domestic business.

“Because City National Bank is so well capitalized, profitable and well positioned in the marketplace, we are going to take our time to fully evaluate all of our strategic alternatives,” City National Bank President and CEO Jorge Gonzalez said in a statement. “This does not impact our ongoing strategy of profitable growth and diversification or our commitment to the markets we serve. Our focus continues to be taking excellent care of our clients and employees. ”

City National, founded 65 years ago, has $4.32 billion in assets and 26 branches from Miami-Dade County to the greater Orlando area.

INA PAIVA CORDLE

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Group to begin reviewing Miami-Dade’s elections practices

A group tasked with making recommendations to improve Miami-Dade elections will begin meeting Tuesday morning, three weeks after Election Day was marked by long lines and a surge of absentee ballots that took several days to count.

County Mayor Carlos Gimenez convened the advisory group to examine state and local elections laws and practices, and suggest changes. The first meeting is expected to feature an overview of legal issues, an outline of the county’s approach to elections and a tour of Miami-Dade’s elections headquarters.

The elections department has not yet submitted its “after-action report,” a post-mortem detailing how things went during the election.

The group will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday at the county’s Doral elections department, 2700 NW 87th Ave. The meeting is open to the public.

In addition to Gimenez, the group includes 13 members he appointed. Among them are four county commissioners: Lynda Bell, Sally Heyman, Dennis Moss and Rebeca Sosa.

The other members are: Alice Ancona of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce; the Rev. Victor Curry, president of the Miami-Dade chapter of the NAACP; Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver Gilbert; former County Attorney Murray Greenberg; Lovette McGill, an activist who has been involved with African-American trade unionists; Gepsie Metellus, executive director of Sant La, a Little Haiti-based social services agency; C.J. Ortuño, executive director of the gay-rights advocacy group SAVE Dade; and elections attorneys Kendall Coffey and Robert Fernandez, who represented Gimenez and newly elected Property Appraiser Carlos Lopez-Cantera in recent elections challenges.

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Alicia Keys Egypt iHeartRadio Concert 2012

Alicia Keys took to the iHeartRadio stage in New York City last night for one of her most intimate -- and important -- concerts, ever.

The Girl on Fire singer performed for a group of Hurricane Sandy first responders and volunteers who have worked tirelessly to help restore the areas and individuals impacted by the natural disaster.

VIDEO - How Does Alicia Stay Fit?

Keys made the evening even more special by bringing son Egypt on stage (the 2-year-old makes a cameo on When It's All Over) for one performance, which brought the house down.

It's been a big week for Keys, whose album is not only drawing rave reviews, but she made history when The Empire State Building coordinated their first-ever lightshow to her hit single, Girl on Fire.

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French court delays ruling on DSK's role in suspected prostitution ring

PARIS — A French court has pushed back a ruling on whether to drop aggravated pimping charges against Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former IMF chief who has successfully fought accusations linked to his "libertine" lifestyle.

The Sipa news agency reports that prosecutors say the court set a new date of Dec. 19 on Strauss-Kahn's demand to annul the charges linking him to a suspected prostitution ring run out of a luxury hotel in the northern city of Lille.

Two of the four people implicated have asked that charges be dropped.

Lawyers for Strauss-Kahn claim the investigating judges were biased.

AFP/Getty Images

Dominique Strauss-Kahn

The economist admits attending "libertine" gatherings but denies knowing that some women present were paid.

New York prosecutors dropped charges of sexual assault against Strauss-Kahn by a New York hotel maid in May 2011.

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Gift ideas for the techie on your list

The holidays are coming fast, and if you’re like me, you’ve probably gotten very little of your gift shopping done.

Here are suggestions for a variety of gifts for the techie and the not-so-techie people on your list.

Some of these items can be found in stores and some are only available online, but you should be able to order them in time for Christmas or Hanukkah.

IOMEGA EZ MEDIA & BACKUP CENTER

What is it? A hard drive that lives on your home network so you can share files, store all your photos and music and back up your home computers. Works on Macintosh, Windows and Linux computers.

The EZ Media & Backup Center is available in 1-, 2- and 3-terabyte capacities. It is simple to set up. It lives next to your home router and plugs into the network via Ethernet.

Major features include a built-in iTunes server so your music is available to all connected computers, Time Machine support for easy Macintosh backups and Iomega’s Personal Cloud to access your data from any Internet connection.

It can also stream your video files to your TV if you’ve got a compatible streaming box or an Internet-connected TV.

Software for backing up Windows PCs is also included.

Who’s it for? Any family that wants central storage for their digital lives. This is a great home for your digital photo, music or video library.

What does it cost? One terabyte for $169.99, two terabytes for $209.99, three terabytes for $279.99.

Where can you get it? Online at www.iomega.com, Amazon, Best Buy, Apple store, Fry’s.

NETATMO URBAN WEATHER STATION

What is it? A wireless indoor/outdoor weather station that displays through an application on your Apple or Android mobile device.

There are two parts, one that lives in your house and one you place outside.

The indoor component plugs into the wall and monitors the temperature, humidity, barometric pressure, carbon dioxide level and even the sound level in decibels.

The outdoor module is battery-powered and measures temperature and humidity.

Once you connect the Netatmo to your home Wi-Fi network, you can download the free app and see your weather stats from anywhere.

Setup was easy enough, and you can set the app to notify you when carbon dioxide rises to levels that you should be warned about — which is great.

Who’s it for? Weather geeks and people who like to know what the temperature is without having to fire up a browser.

What does it cost? $179

Where can you get it? www.netatmo.com

3M LED ADVANCED LIGHT

What is it? 3M’s first foray into the home light bulb market is with the LED Advanced Light, which uses light-emitting diodes (LED) to produce 800 lumens (the light of a 60-watt bulb).

The Advanced Light has a life span of 25 years and costs just $1.63 per year if it’s turned on for three hours per day.

The bulb lights instantly and is dimmable.

It’s a little intimidating to start buying light bulbs that might outlive me, but my wallet approves.

Who’s it for? Anyone who wants to save money or wants a bulb that might not have to be changed until 2035.

What does it cost? $25

Where can you get it? Select Wal-Mart stores. For more information, go to www.3mlighting.com/LED.

STEM IZON 2.0 WI-FI VIDEO MONITOR

What is it? A small, wireless video camera that you can monitor remotely with an iOS device.

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Three people wounded in drive-by shooting in Miami Gardens

An apparent drive-by shooting late Monday night in Miami Gardens has left three people in the hospital and neighbors wondering whether the wrong house was targeted.

According to reports, the shooting happened in the 20800 block of Northwest 30th Court. Air rescue took the victims, two men and a woman, to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where at least one remains in serious condition.

Neighbors said three people were outside a house when bullets started flying from a passing car. Three people in the group were hit.

Audrey Roberts, 73, said his 37-year-old son was wounded in the shooting. He said his son and friends often spend time outside talking near the garage.

“They don’t know” who did the shooting, Roberts said.

He said he heard “a lot of shots,” possibly from more than one gun. “Pop-pop-pop-pop-pop.”

On Tuesday morning, he pointed to a home garage door pocked with bullet holes.

Miami Herald photojournalist Walter Michot contributed to this report. This article will be updated as more information becomes available.

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Card firms’ block on WikiLeaks did not break rules: EU

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A block on processing donations for WikiLeaks by Visa Europe and other credit card companies is unlikely to have violated EU anti-trust rules, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

DataCell, a company that collected donations for WikiLeaks, complained to the Commission about Visa Europe, MasterCard Europe and American Express Co after they stopped processing donations for WikiLeaks in December 2010. Their decisions followed criticism by the United States of WikiLeaks’ release of thousands of sensitive U.S. diplomatic cables.

“On the basis of the information available, the Commission considers that the complaint does not merit further investigation because it is unlikely that any infringement of EU competition rules could be established,” said a spokesman for the Commission, the EU executive.

He added, however, that the Commission would look at new information from DataCell before taking a final decision.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been staying in Ecuador’s embassy in central London since June to avoid extradition to Sweden to face rape and sexual assault allegations.

Assange said there were no lawful grounds for the card companies’ actions, which he said had cost Wikileaks 95 percent of its revenue and threatened his organization’s existence.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee and Adrian Croft; Editing by Louise Heavens)

Internet News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Matt Damon Talks Larry Hagman

In Entertainment Tonight's final interview with Larry Hagman, the Dallas icon revealed which younger actor he was hoping to co-star alongside.

VIDEO - Larry Hagman Charms in Final ET Interview

"I'd like to play Matt Damon's daddy," Hagman told ET. "He's a wonderful actor, I really admire him, and I'd like to play his daddy one day. You listenin' out there Matt? I'd like to work with you, boy!"

VIDEO - Larry Hagman's First ET Interview

While Hagman's untimely passing on November 23 prevented the two from ever working together, ET caught up with Damon at The Independent Film Project's 22nd Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards in New York City last night and relayed the message.

EXCLUSIVE - Larry Hagman's Final Public Appearance

"I grew up watching him," an honored Damon exclusively told ET of the late, great TV star. "Who Shot J.R.? was more than a TV event. It made its way into my consciousness at a very young age. I was probably 10 or 11 when all that was going on. He was certainly impactful in a way that is probably much harder to be now. There's a lot more channels and a lot more noise. He's a huge part of American culture."

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Satellite photo shows increased activity at N.Korean launch site

Reuters/DigitalGlobe

The Sohae Launch Facility in North Korea

WASHINGTON - A new satellite image shows a marked increase in activity at a North Korean missile launch site, pointing to a possible long-range ballistic missile test by Pyongyang in the next three weeks, according to satellite operator DigitalGlobe Inc.

The imagery was released days after a Japanese newspaper, the Asahi Shimbun, reported that U.S. intelligence analysts had detected moves that were seen as preparation by North Korea for a long-range missile launch as early as this month.

DigitalGlobe, which provides commercial satellite imagery to the U.S. government and foreign governments, on Monday released a new image that it said showed increased activity at North Korea's Sohae (West Sea) Satellite Launch Station.

It said the imagery showed more people, trucks and other equipment at the site, a level of activity that was consistent with preparations seen before North Korea's failed April 13 rocket launch.

"Given the observed level of activity noted of a new tent, trucks, people and numerous portable fuel/oxidizer tanks, should North Korea desire, it could possibly conduct its fifth satellite launch event during the next three weeks," DigitalGlobe said in a statement accompanying the image.

A Pentagon spokeswoman declined to comment on the reported satellite images, but said the Defense Department's position on North Korea's missile development efforts had not changed.

She urged North Korea to comply with UN Security Council resolutions that "require Pyongyang to suspend all activities related to its ballistic missile program in a complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner, and re-establish its moratorium on missile launching."

North Korea, which carried out nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009 and is under heavy UN sanctions for its atomic weapons program, has tried for years to influence major events in South Korea by waging propaganda or armed attacks. South Korea is gearing up for a presidential election on Dec. 19.

North and South Korea have been technically at war since their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, and regional powers have for years been trying to rein in the North's nuclear program.

North Korea is believed to be developing a long-range ballistic missile with a range of up to 4,200 miles (6,700 km) aimed at hitting the continental United States but the last two rocket test launches failed.

In April, under its new leader Kim Jong-un, North Korea launched a rocket that flew just a few minutes covering a little over 60 miles (100 km) before crashing into the sea between South Korea and China.

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