Business news in brief

Pep Boys - Manny, Moe & Jack reported a bigger loss for its fourth quarter, largely attributable to a $17.8 million pension settlement charge. Net loss for the Philadelphia-based chain of 758 auto parts and service centers widened to $14.5 million, or 27 cents per share, for the 14-week period that ended Feb. 2. For a 13-week period a year ago, Pep Boys lost $4.4 million, or 8 cents per share. Revenues for the fourth quarter rose 5 percent to $530.8 million from $505.3 million a year ago. However, excluding that 14th week, comparable sales were down 2.6 percent. For the year, Pep Boys said it generated net income of $12.8 million, or 24 cents per share, on total revenues of $2.09 billion. A year earlier, the retailer rang up net income of $28.9 million, or 54 cents per share, on revenues of $2.06 billion. Pep Boys released its financial results after the market had closed. Its shares closed at $11.25, down 43 cents. - Mike Armstrong

The AmeriHealth Mercy Family of Cos., a Philadelphia-based manager of Medicaid and other government-sponsored health benefits in 13 states, changed its name to AmeriHealth Caritas, the company announced. The name change was a condition of Mercy Health System of Southeastern Pennsylvania's 2011 sale of its stake in AmeriHealth Mercy to Independence Blue Cross and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan for $194 million, plus a $43 million pledge to be paid over seven years to the Mercy Health System Foundation. In the Philadelphia region, AmeriHealth is best known for the Keystone Mercy Health Plan, which is now Keystone First. Members will receive new cards, but benefits will not change, Keystone First said. - Harold Brubaker

The U.S. Supreme Court denied a request by drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline P.L.C. to hear its appeal of a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia, which allowed health-insurance giant Humana to sue Glaxo over sales of Glaxo's controversial diabetes drug Avandia. Glaxo agreed to pay millions to settle lawsuits over Avandia and has agreed to reimburse Medicare for the cost of treating Medicare patients. Glaxo objected to a small slice of Medicare law that allows private insurers who run Medicare Advantage programs to sue for double damages. - David Sell

The Scooter Store, a Texas-based company, with an outlet in Trainer, Delaware County, that supplies power wheelchairs and scooters to people with limited mobility, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The filing in Delaware comes after federal agents raided the company's headquarters earlier this year, and amid congressional scrutiny of whether TV ads by the Scooter Store and a rival company target people who don't need scooters, leading to hundreds of millions of dollars in unnecessary Medicare spending. The company listed assets between $1 million and $10 million, and liabilities between $50 million and $100 million. - Bloomberg News

The 11 casinos in Pennsylvania generated record table-game revenue in March. The casinos generated $67.4 million in gross table-game revenue, up 9 percent from March 2012, according to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. There are currently 1,041 table games, such as poker and blackjack, operating throughout the state, up 13 tables from a year ago. The top four table game revenue generating casinos last month were Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem at $15.3 million; Parx at $11.1 million; SugarHouse at $8.0 million; and Harrah's Philadelphia at $7.3 million. Table game revenue is taxed at 14 percent in Pennsylvania. - Suzette Parmley

Dish Network Corp. is trying to snag U.S. wireless carrier Sprint Nextel from a Japanese suitor. Dish offered $25.5 billion in cash and stock for Sprint, which Dish says beats an offer from Japan's Softbank Corp. If the Dish deal goes through, it would create a unique combination of pay-TV and wireless operator. Dish hopes to lure customers with the promise of TV service that can go with them, out of the house, and on their phones. It has already broken ranks with the pay-TV industry by providing a set-top box that can send recorded shows to iPads. - AP

J.C. Penney Co. announced that it would draw $850 million from its $1.85 billion revolving credit line to pay for replenishing inventory, particularly for its overhauled home area. Some analysts say the move shows that the Plano, Texas-based company is burning through cash faster than expected. Penney is also looking for alternative sources of funding. It comes at a critical time. Penney is wrapping up back-to-school orders and starting to order goods for the critical holiday shopping season at the end of the year. Normally retailers order goods well in advance but don't pay for them until about 30 to 60 days until after goods are shipped. If vendors start demanding to be paid in advance, stores face a cash crunch. - AP

U.S. homebuilders are concerned that limited land and rising costs for building materials and labor will slow sales in the short term. Still, their outlook for sales over the next six months climbed to the highest level in more than six years - suggesting the obstacles could be temporary. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo builder sentiment index fell this month to 42 from 44 in March. It was the third decline since January. Measures of customer traffic and current sales conditions both declined from March's reading. - AP