Pendleton JC Penney set to close

NEW YORK (AP) — J.C. Penney is joining its department store rivals in pruning its store numbers in an era of online shopping.

Penney said Friday that it will close 130 to 140 stores as well as two distribution centers over the next several months as it tries to improve profitability. The company said that it would also initiate a voluntary early retirement program for about 6,000 eligible employees.

The Pendleton store is among those that will close. Other Oregon stores that will close include The Dalles and La Grande. Only one Washington store is closing-- that's in Snohomish.

The news came as Penney posted a profit for the fourth quarter, compared to a loss a year ago. But total sales were down slightly, and a key revenue metric declined a bit as well. The company issued a conservative annual forecast, sending shares down 9 percent on Friday.

CEO Marvin Ellison acknowledged that Penney wasn't strategic with promotions, which hurt profit margins, and said that its level of couponing was "unhealthy." It plans to use a more data-driven approach to pricing this year after testing the strategy in some categories last year.