J.C. Penney (JCP) tumbled last week, fell again yesterday, and is set to slide some more today. A big investor, Vornado Realty Trust, reportedly sold 10 million shares of the retailer on Monday, almost half of its stake. Making matters worse, appearance-wise, the man who runs Vornado is a board member at Penney. The company's shares took a hit last week on much worse than expected fourth-quarter results.

Martha Stewart takes the stand today in the court case that has her line of housewares in the middle of dispute between Penney's and Macy's (M). Macy's claims it has exclusive rights to the Martha Stewart line, and that Penney should be preventing from selling it.

Women's retailer Ascena (ASNA) beat Street expectations. The company operates the Lane Bryant, Charming Shoppes, and Dress Barn chains.

The White House has come down on the side of consumers in a battle with wireless phone industry. The administration is backing an effort to allow consumers to unlock their smartphones and tablets in order to move between wireless carriers without having to buy a new device. That could force AT&T (T), Verizon Wireless (VZ) and other carriers to lower prices.

HJ Heinz (HNZ) CEO William Johnson could collect more than $200 million dollars if he is not retained following completion of the company's acquisition. That includes golden parachute payments, bonuses, pension and deferred compensation. That would rank among the 10 largest exit packages ever.

Photo Credit: Thomas Iannaccone, AP