Dive Summary:

• Despite the down March jobs report which could have led to a stock market slide, retailer J.C. Penney saw gains of 4%.
• The ‘new-look’ retailer led by former Apple store guru Ron Johnson has encountered well-documented challenges in increasing the retail chain’s value since taking over.
• Since short sellers own more than 40% of J.C. Penney stock, economists remain focused on whether the trend will last for the embattled retailer with shares down 20% overall for 2013.
   

From the article:

“J.C. Penney's problems are well-known at this point. The department store chain's sales have continued to fall despite an ambitious store-within-a-store strategy launched by CEO Ron Johnson. The former Apple (AAPL) retail guru has not been able to convince investors that his plan will work.”