Other Specialty Retail

A string of large-scale personal data leaks caused by unauthorized access is continuing. Book Off Group Holdings announced on the 9th that up to about 6.43 million pieces of member data were leaked as a result of unauthorized access, and Daiichikosho, which operates the karaoke chain Big Echo, also disclosed that roughly 8.72 million pieces of personal information may have been leaked. In both cases, the leaked information includes members' and customers' names, dates of birth, email addresses and phone numbers, and both companies said that as of the time of their announcements no misuse of the information by third parties had been confirmed, urging affected individuals to be wary of suspicious emails and phone calls. At Book Off, a subsidiary that manages member information was breached, while at Daiichikosho the system of an outsourcing contractor handling personal data management was hit by unauthorized access. Both companies commented, "We deeply apologize for causing our customers enormous worry and inconvenience," and are hurrying to implement measures to prevent a recurrence.

Large-scale leaks of personal information caused by unauthorized access are occurring one after another. Bookoff Group Holdings announced on the 9th that up to about 6.43 million member records may have leaked due to unauthorized access, and Daiichikosho, which operates the karaoke chain Big Echo, also disclosed that roughly 8.72 million pieces of personal information may have been leaked. In both cases, the leaked information includes members' and customers' names, dates of birth, email addresses, and phone numbers, and both companies said that as of the time of their announcements no misuse by third parties had been confirmed, urging affected individuals to be wary of suspicious emails and phone calls. At Bookoff, a subsidiary that manages member information was affected, while at Daiichikosho, a system operated by an outsourcing contractor handling personal information was hit by the unauthorized access. Both companies commented, "We deeply apologize for causing our customers enormous worry and inconvenience," and are hurrying to implement measures to prevent a recurrence.

Seria, a major 100-yen shop operator, plunged as much as 6.5% from the previous day to 4,180 yen at one point, sinking to its lowest level in about a month and a half, before closing down 200 yen at 4,270 yen. The sell-off was triggered by the company's preliminary September sales report released the previous day, which showed same-store sales rose 8.3% year on year, slowing from a 9.7% gain in August. Average spending per customer rose 2.2%, outpacing August's 1.7% increase, but customer traffic grew just 6.0%, below August's 7.9% gain. Total sales across all stores, including the contribution from new openings, rose 11.8%, continuing double-digit revenue growth. According to some analysts, sticker sales were roughly flat year on year, while daily necessities such as garbage bags and handicraft supplies remained strong. The stock had risen more than 40% year to date to a high of 4,905 yen set on September 15, and its decline from that peak has widened to about 15%.

Leslie's is reportedly preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and hand over control of the business to lenders who are providing about $100M in financial support. According to Bloomberg, the company will declare bankruptcy as soon as next week. A group of lenders will provide roughly $100M in debtor-in-possession financing to fund operations through the bankruptcy, and the company will then hand over the business to the lenders in return for turning $750M in debt into equity. The anticipated bankruptcy follows a warning last month that Leslie's might not be able to continue as a going concern, struggling to regain momentum after a pandemic-led boom fizzled, during which the company expanded to more than 1,000 stores, a footprint it was unable to maintain as sales dried up. Leslie's shares have lost 94% of their value over the last three years, trading at less than $1 per share.

Inner Mongolia Xinhua hit limit-up again on September 24, closing at 18.47 yuan per share. That marks its sixth limit-up in the past seven trading sessions. Since its limit-up on September 16, the stock has surged 82.33 percent, and its gain since the start of September has reached 99.89 percent, nearly doubling. Total market value has risen to 6.53 billion yuan. Earlier, the Shanghai Stock Exchange issued a regulatory work letter to the company after the close on September 22, citing matters related to share price volatility. The company issued another announcement on unusual stock trading the same day, stating bluntly that its share price has risen sharply in the short term, that a pass-the-parcel effect is evident, and that there are risks of overheated market sentiment and irrational speculation. The announcement disclosed that from September 16 to September 22, the company's rolling price-to-earnings ratios were 54.59 times, 60.03 times, 66.06 times, 72.67 times and 79.93 times respectively, while the rolling price-to-earnings ratios for the news and publishing industry from September 16 to September 21 were only 16.76 times, 16.91 times, 17.11 times and 17.42 times, significantly higher than the industry benchmark. The company also flagged the risk of declining performance. In the first half of 2026, it achieved operating revenue of 599 million yuan, down 24.18 percent year on year. Net profit attributable to the parent company was 22.91 million yuan, down 81.75 percent year on year. Net profit excluding non-recurring items was 9.06 million yuan, down 91.20 percent year on year. On that day, the stock's turnover reached 1.312 billion yuan, with a turnover rate of 20.42 percent. It also appeared on the list of top-traded stocks because its cumulative deviation in gains over three consecutive trading days reached 20 percent, its daily gain deviation reached 7 percent, and its daily amplitude reached 15 percent. The culture and media sector extended its strength the same day. Xinhua Winshare achieved its fifth consecutive limit-up, closing at 20.35 yuan per share, with total market value rising to 25.109 billion yuan. Since September 16, its cumulative gain has been 72.6 percent. Xinhua Media continued its one-word limit-up for a fourth straight session, closing at 7.77 yuan per share, with total market value rising to 8.119 billion yuan. The company previously announced plans to acquire 100 percent equity in Jiemian Cailianshe through a share issuance, but cautioned that audit and appraisal work has not yet been completed and that there is uncertainty over whether approval will be granted and when.

JD Sports Fashion reported weaker sales and profits for the six months to August 1, blaming cost-of-living pressures for weighing on demand among its younger customers. Sales came in at £5.9 billion, about 0.7% less than the same period a year ago, driven by a 1.7% decline in North America, its biggest market, and a 1.6% fall in the UK, partly offset by sales jumping by more than a 10th in the Asia Pacific region. Adjusted pre-tax profit tumbled by a fifth to £282 million. Chief executive Regis Schultz described a resilient performance against a challenging backdrop of consumer cost-of-living pressures, footwear product cycle headwinds and a highly promotional market, and the retailer cut its full-year profit outlook last month to between £700 million and £800 million, down from a previously guided range of £750 million to £850 million. JD Sports had 4,766 stores worldwide in August, more than 100 fewer than a year earlier, and analysts said its trading is being hurt by weaker sales trends at Nike, one of its most significant brand partners.

Zacks Investment Research added three stocks to its Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) List for September 22nd. AGI Inc, ticker AGBK, a provider of tech-enabled financial solutions in Brazil, saw its Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings revised 14.5% downward over the last 60 days. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, ticker AXS, which offers insurance covering property, workers compensation, professional liability, casualty, and marine and aviation, had its current-year earnings estimate cut 6.4% over the same period. DICK'S Sporting Goods, Inc., ticker DKS, a sporting goods retailer, saw its current-year earnings estimate revised 17.8% downward over the last 60 days.