DailyFinance Wire

The big daddy of private equity, Kohlberg Kravis and Roberts -- KKR -- is tapping the New York Stock Exchange for an initial public offering. But private-equity firms don't have the best track record in the IPO arena, so eager investors should be wary.

U.S. consumer sentiment unexpectedly fell for the second straight month in March, capping off a mixed week for the nation's economy, with both initial jobless claims and the trade deficit coming in lower-than-expected, and retail sales rising despite February's snow storms.

Despite recall woes, Toyota sales so far this month are on a roll, thanks largely to generous incentives aimed at improving foot traffic in showrooms. Edmonds.com reports that the seasonally adjusted annual rate of U.S. sales climbed a strong 12.5 million units.

It was a status-quo month regarding inventories in January, as business inventories were unchanged. However, sales rose 0.6%, despite the fact that the nation encountered severe winter weather across the country -- something that typically depresses sales.

The airline industry, which has broken the hearts of investors for decades, has been on a bit of a roll lately. Earlier this week, the NYSE Arca Airline Index reached a full-year high, with shares of some of the biggest carriers up more than 200% over the past 12 months.

On March 15, 1985, a computer company in Cambridge, Mass., registered the very first dot-com site. There were six by the end of the year. And 25 years later, a hundred thousand sites are registered every day, and it's hard to remember life without it, 25 years ago.

Retail sales rose unexpectedly in February, despite brutal weather throughout the country. Retail and food services sales rose to $355.5 billion, up 0.3% from January and 3.9% from February 2009. Excluding auto sales, totals were up 4.2% from the year-ago month and retail sales only were up 4.4%. Auto sales were up 2.1% above February 2009.

Books-A-Million, the country's third-largest retail bookstore chain, released its fourth-quarter earnings Thursday, and the news was something of a split decision. Sales dropped 4.6% to $157.2 million, but profits were up $11.9 million -- a 30.1% increase.

The Delafield Fund invests in the troubled manufacturers of Middle America, but it has more than doubled its clients' money over the past year. The fund has more than 46% of its assets in industrials, which is about triple the amount held by similar funds in the value universe.

We're not even halfway through March, and it seems the month has already been marked with an abundance of failed drug studies. The most recent: Three potential cancer drugs -- two from Pfizer and one from Roche -- didn't pan out in late stage clinical trials.

Although the OJ industry has said the January cold wave didn't do as much harm as everyone feared, Tropicana is shrinking some OJ packages and raising prices on others. What are the odds it'll reverse those moves when the next crop comes at typical levels?

Being in a financial tight spot is fraught with difficulty, but there are a few options to consider. Active initiatives are now available from both governmental and nonprofit groups.

Retail sales posted a surprising increase in February as consumers did not let major snowstorms stop them from storming the malls. The advance, the biggest since November, provided hope that the recovery from the Great Recession is gaining momentum.

Below are some of the best reads for investors from around the Web:

Looks like being a hedge fund manager is a pretty lucrative job. Here are all the hedge fund managers who made the Forbes billionaires list.
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Did George Soros and John Paulson just make the worst trade ever?...

The following is a round-up of news likely to affect stock prices today:

National Semiconductor (NSM) reported third-quarter profit more than doubled, beating estimates. The company also predicted a 4% to 8% sequential revenue rise that was also above Wall Street's expectations. Shares climbed 1.8%...

Vitacost.com is a relatively tiny online retailer that's been battling with giants such as Amazon , Walmart), and GNC. Even so, Vitacost is a leading pure play in Internet retailing and direct marketing of health and wellness products, such as vitamins and dietary supplements.

In Asia Friday, China's Shanghai Composite Index sank 1.2% to 3,013 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dipped 0.1% to 21,210. In Japan the Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.8% to 10,751.

The Bank of Japan, the country's central bank, signaled that it may extend further support to banks by injecting even more cash...

Janet Yellen, the president of the San Francisco Fed, is expected to be nominated as the new vice chairman of the Federal Reserve as early as today. Yellen, a strong supporter of Chairman Ben Bernanke's monetary policies, would replace Donald Kohn, who will retire in June.

News Corp. shareholders, be afraid. The more Rupert Murdoch talks about his company's digital strategy, the clearer it becomes that he doesn't understand what it is he's talking about.

Hewlett-Packard launches a star-studded campaign -- which an unnamed source told The Wall Street Journal will cost $40 million -- to change its image as a printer and PC company. But is it just a waste of shareholder money?

At $639 billion, Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy was the biggest in U.S. history. Now a federal judge has released a report saying that rather than working to prevent the collapse, senior Lehman executives, auditor Ernst & Young and other investment banks may actually have hastened it.

Bottlers declared guidelines to cut sugary drinks in kids' diets a success, claiming a 95% drop in full-calorie sodas shipped to schools and a 72% cut in all drink types. Yet sales haven't suffered and childhood obesity and diabetes rates climb unabated. So what's happening to all that soda?

Pink Floyd won a key ruling against EMI Thursday that could end the sale of its single tracks online. The decision is seen as a win for artist control against record labels.

After the worst year in history for dividends, companies are back to showing shareholders the money. The number of companies raising their payouts this quarter has already hit the highest rate in two years. That's great news for income investors.

Soda is the latest target of sin taxes, and New York City is at the forefront, but a recent study says soda consumers there are more than twice as likely to be low-income and almost three times as likely to be minorities. A regressive soda tax falls more heavily on the heads of New York's poor.