J.C. Penney shake-up continues as CFO leaves

J.C. Penney shake-up continues as CFO leaves J.C. Penney Co. Chief Financial Officer Michael Dastugue will leave the U.S. department store company this week as new Chief Executive Ron Johnson shakes up the executive ranks. Dastugue, who became CFO and won a seat on the board of directors in January 2011 after more than 20 years at the company, will leave April 13, J.C. Penney said. The company didn't specify a reason for the exit. Chief Operating Officer Michael Kramer, who joined the retailer in December, will fill the position on an interim basis during the search for a successor.

Natural gas prices fall to lowest in a decade Natural gas futures in New York dropped below $2 per million British thermal units for the first time in a decade on a growing supply glut caused by mild weather and record production. Gas is down 34 percent this year, making it the worst performer on the Standard & Poor's GSCI commodity index. U.S. stockpiles last month were at an all-time high for the season after the warmest March on record. Natural gas for May delivery slid 4.7 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $1.984 per million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the lowest settlement price since Jan. 28, 2002.

Nokia warns about first-quarter earnings Nokia lowered its first-quarter profit forecast as demand for its Symbian-based smartphones, which the company is phasing out, weakened sharply amid the transition to phones using Microsoft's Windows Phone software. Nokia, the world's largest maker of cellphones by volume, said its operating margin in the first quarter for devices and services, which make up 60 percent of sales, would be a 3 percent loss. Previously, it forecast a margin of "around break-even, ranging either above or below by approximately 2 percentage points."

Lehman expects a larger payout to creditors Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., which is preparing its first payment to creditors after more than three years in bankruptcy, said the initial distribution will be $22.5 billion, or 53 percent more than it previously estimated was possible. Senior bondholders of the parent company will get about 6 cents on the dollar of their allowed claims in the first payment, while unsecured creditors of some Lehman affiliates will get 16 cents or more, according to a bankruptcy court filing in New York.

Energy firm MRC Global raises $477M in IPO MRC Global Inc., the energy products and services company owned by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., raised $477.3 million in an initial public offering, pricing the shares at the low end of the marketed range. MRC and Goldman Sachs sold 22.7 million shares at $21 each after offering them for $21 to $23. The price values the Houston-based company at $2.13 billion. MRC dubs itself the largest global distributor of pipe, valves and fittings to the energy industry by sales. Goldman Sachs will hold about 77 percent of MRC after the IPO.

Study: As fees rise, more turn to prepaid cards Prepaid card use rose by about 18 percent in 2011 as consumers dropped traditional banking products such as checking accounts with higher fees, according to a study. About 13 percent of U.S. adults had prepaid cards in 2011, compared with 11 percent in 2010, according to the study by Pleasanton, Calif.-based Javelin Strategy & Research, a market-research firm.