Shares in British luxury goods company Burberry Group PLC jumped Tuesday after the company reported strong second-half sales and predicted a full-year profit at the top end of market forecasts.

Burberry's popularity in the Asia Pacific region, particularly Hong Kong and Taiwan, led sales 33 percent higher in the six months to March 31, compared to a year earlier.

Chief Executive Angela Ahrendts said the company expects full-year pretax profit to be at the top end of market forecasts, or around 347 million pounds ($564 million).

"While the luxury industry faces global challenges in the year ahead, we remain confident in our team's ability to outperform, underpinned by the consistent execution of our key strategies," said Ahrendts in a trading update.

Retail revenues were 42 percent higher at 596 million pounds ($972 million), while wholesale revenues rose 14 percent to 214 million pounds ($349 million).

Shares in the company, known for its distinctive red, black and brown plaid fabric, were up 6 percent at 1,216 pence in midmorning trade on the London Stock Exchange.

Dollar Financial Corp. said Tuesday that it plans to offer 5 million shares of its common stock to help fund its purchase of a payday loan company in England.

Dollar Financial which offers financial services like check-cashing mostly to lower-income customers, didn't say in its news release how much it expects the offering to raise.

But it said it plans to lend the money to its subsidiary Dollar Financial U.K. Limited, which bought payday lender Purpose U.K. Holdings on Friday for $195 million using revolving credit.

Dollar Financial will grant the underwriters an option to buy up to 750,000 additional shares to cover over-allotments, if any. Credit Suisse Securities LLC and Nomura Securities International Inc. are serving as joint book runners.

The offering was announced after the markets closed Tuesday, and Dollar Financial's shares initially fell more than 4 percent after hours. They settled around $21.77, down 38 cents, or less than 2 percent

Some analysts raised their price targets for Abercrombie & Fitch Co. on Wednesday, citing the retailer's strong 2012 earnings outlook and international prospects.

During an analyst day on Tuesday, Abercrombie & Fitch forecast 2012 earnings of $4.75 per share. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect earnings of $4.31 per share.

The New Albany, Ohio-based chain also forecast revenue of $7.5 billion or more by 2015.

Edward Yruma of KeyBanc Capital Markets said in a client note that the revenue guidance relies mostly on aggressive overseas growth. He boosted the company's price target to $75 from $65 and maintained a "Buy" rating.

Betty Chen at Wedbush Securities boosted Abercrombie & Fitch's price target to $60 from $57 and kept a "Neutral" rating. She also increased the company's 2011 earnings estimate to $2.95 from $2.85 per share and raised her 2012 forecast to $4.75 from $3.88 per share, citing more international store openings.

But Chen said in a client note that the stock has been outperforming of late and that she "would prefer to become more constructive on a pullback as we remain concerned with the ability to increase U.S. store productivity given the domestic retail environment."

Retailers in the U.S. struggled during the recession as consumers pulled back on spending. Rising costs have pressured many to raise prices or prepare to boost prices, leaving experts to wonder how shoppers will react when they are also contending with increasing gas prices.

Shares of Cisco Systems Inc. led the technology sector higher Wednesday after CEO John Chambers vowed to take "bold steps" to turn the company around following recent missteps — including three disappointing quarterly reports.

In a memo to employees that the technology bellwether posted on its corporate blog Tuesday, Chambers offered few specifics but suggested that big changes are coming.

Shares of Cisco, which is the world's largest maker of networking equipment, on Wednesday rose 85 cents, or 5 percent — the most of any stock in the Dow Jones industrial average — to $18.07 in trading. The stock is still down about 10.4 percent year-to-date.

In a research note published during trading on Tuesday, Wedbush Morgan analyst Rohit Chopra called the memo a "necessary first step in order to reinvigorate growth" and added that he is "more optimistic about the company's prospects." In trading that day, Cisco shares rose 16 cents, or 1 percent, to close at 17.22.

Cisco has branched out beyond its core business of selling routers and switches that form the backbone of the Internet. It has moved into related areas such as cable set-top boxes and digital cameras that have made the company more visible to consumers.

Stock indexes are pushing higher ahead of the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's last meeting. The report is expected to give details into the central bank's views about how healthy the economy is.

Stocks had edged lower in early trading after a survey from the Institute of Supply Management showed a slower growth rate at service companies than analysts had predicted.

Microsoft, Intel and Cisco Systems are leading the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones industrial average.

The Dow is up 15 points, or 0.1 percent, to 12,415 in midday trading. The S&P is up 3, or 0.2 percent, to 1,335. The Nasdaq composite is up 11, or 0.4 percent, to 2,800.