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A humorous look at the companies that caught our eye, for better or worse, this week.

Lululemon Athletica


LULU (Nasdaq)

  June 13, 2014 close: $37.61 (U.S.)
  down $6.81 or 15.3% over week

How to lose a lot of money quickly:
1) Flush it down the toilet
2) Light it on fire
3) Invest it in Lululemon

Shares of the yoga wear retailer plunged to the lowest in more than three years after founder Chip Wilson fought unsuccessfully to unseat two board members and the company cut its financial outlook for the year. With Lululemon expecting same-store sales to fall in the current quarter as it battles quality control issues and growing competition, investors have had it with turning the other, um, cheek.

Crude oil


CL-FT

  June 13, 2014 close: $106.91 (U.S.)
  up $4.25 or 4.1% over week

Here’s an idea: Send Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney to fight the Sunni extremists in Iraq. After all, they created this mess in the first place. With an al-Qaeda splinter group taking over the cities of Mosul and Tikrit with little resistance from the Iraqi army, crude oil surged to a nine-month high amid worries that further gains by the rebels could disrupt crude exports from OPEC’s second-biggest producer. Might want to think twice about that summer road trip.

RadioShack


RSH (NYSE)

  June 13, 2014 close: $1.16 (U.S.)
  down $0.31 or 21.1% over week

Love Shack: A song by The B-52s.
RadioShack: A company whose stock looks like it was bombed by B-52s.

Hurt by what it called an “industry-wide decline in consumer electronics,” the U.S. retailer’s first-quarter loss more than tripled to $98.3-million – worse than Wall Street expected – as same-store sales plunged 14 per cent. With some analysts worried about the company’s survival if it continues to burn cash, this Shack is getting no love at all from investors.

Molson Coors


TAP (NYSE)

  June 13, 2014 close: $71.23 (U.S.)
  up $4.51 or 6.8% over week

What’s more fun than stopping at the pub after work for a quick six or seven beers? Answer: Owning the company that makes those beers. Buoyed by cost cuts, surging international sales and a recovering U.S. job market, Molson Coors’ profits are growing faster than its North American peers. As speculation grows that the company might buy out the 58 per cent of MillerCoors owned by joint venture partner SABMiller, investors are feeling intoxicated by all the cash pouring in.

Family Dollar


FDO (NYSE)

  June 13, 2014 close: $66.66 (U.S.)
  up $6.13 or 10.1% over week

You won’t find billionaire Carl Icahn wandering the aisles of Family Dollar looking for deals on bread and toilet paper. He prefers to buy the company’s stock. Calling the shares undervalued, the activist investor disclosed a 9.4-per-cent stake and said he wants to explore “strategies to enhance shareholder value” at the discount retailer, which is struggling amid competition from Wal-Mart and other dollar chains. Judging by the rising share price, his efforts are already paying off.