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5 Top Retail Stocks to Buy Ahead of a Strong Holiday Season
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Retailers are psyched up as usual for the holiday shopping season — mid-November to late January — with a record number of shoppers, especially online, expected this time.
Spending is likely to surge as the economy is in good shape and consumers are quite confident about their well-being. Thus, it’s time to invest in some solid retail stocks that are likely to make the most of the bullish sentiments.
Retailers to End 2018 With a Bang
According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), holiday retail sales in November and December — excluding automobiles, gasoline and restaurants — will jump between 4.3% and 4.8% from last year to reach a total of $717.45 billion to $720.89 billion. The projections, in fact, show an average annual increase of 3.9% over the past five years.
(Source: National Retail Federation)
The NRF and Prosper Insights & Analytics reports added that consumers are willing to spend an average of $1,007.24 during the upcoming holiday season, up 4.1% from the projection of $967.13 for last year. The holiday shopping is expected to start this month and next, while a few started as early as last month.
The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), in the meantime, offered a slightly more conservative projection. Still, it remains a healthy 3.8% increase from last year. ICSC also noted that November and December are the busiest shopping months, while most number of people is planning to begin shopping before Thanksgiving.
ICSC surmises that 96% of shoppers are willing to make purchases from retailers who have both a physical store as well as online presence, with 91% of shoppers buying at physical locations. It noted that 92% of millennials plan to spend in physical stores. Deloitte, in its 33 rd annual Holiday Survey of consumer spending and trends, too chipped in and said that 62% of total spend is expected to be online, mass merchant stores (52%), department stores (32%) followed by off-price retailers (28%).
Last but not the least, Moody’s projects overall holiday sales growth of 5% to 6%, pretty much above the long-term average, while eMarketer projects growth of 6%, the highest growth rate since 2011.
Why Consumers Are Ready to Spend More
NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay rightly said that “thanks to a healthy economy and strong consumer confidence, we believe that this holiday season will continue to reflect the growth we’ve seen over the past year.”
In the last two quarters, the U.S. economy recorded the fastest six-month growth in four years and is on track to hit the Trump administration’s annual growth target of 3%. If that happens, it would be the best yearly performance since 2005, two years before the Great Recession.
The U.S. economy got a boost in the third quarter, with GDP increasing at an annualized pace of 3.5%, per the U.S. Commerce Department. In fact, the country’s total output of goods and services followed an even stronger 4.2% growth in the second quarter.
At the same time, consumers in America are currently most confident in almost two decades, courtesy of a healthy labor market. Their assessment of present-day conditions is encouraging, making them confident of continued economic expansion, at least in the near term.
The consumer confidence index climbed to 137.9 last month from 135.3 in September, per the Conference Board, a business research organization.
People’s confidence in the present situations improved from 169.4 in September to 172.8 last month, matching the highest level reached in December 2000. The future expectations index also moved from 112.5 to 114.6, an 18-year high (read more: Consumer Confidence Leaps to 18-Year High: 5 Big Gainers).
Holiday Season to be a Good One for Retailers: 5 Picks
Taking the bullish holiday sales trend into account, retailers are undoubtedly set to witness a strong year-end rally. At the same time, retailers are already off to a good start this earnings season. Of the 19 retail companies that have reported Q3 earnings so far, 37.5% are up from the same period last year on 10.7% higher revenues, with 89.5% beating earnings estimates and 63.2% beating revenue estimates (read more: Can Retail Stocks Build on Their Recent Gains?).
Hence, it will be prudent to invest in five of the best retail stocks for handsome returns. Such stocks have a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy).
Nordstrom, Inc. (JWN - Free Report) provides apparel, shoes, cosmetics, and accessories for women, men, young adults, and children in the United States. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2.T he Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.3% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is almost 21% compared with the Retail - Apparel and Shoes industry’s expected growth of 9.6%. The company has outperformed the broader industry so far this year (+38.1% vs -2.6%).
RH (RH - Free Report) operates as a retailer in the home furnishings. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.1% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 150.2% compared with the Retail - Home Furnishings industry’s expected rise of 12.1%. The company has outperformed the broader industry in the year-to-date period (+45.5% vs -9.3%).
Kohl's Corporation (KSS - Free Report) operates as an omni-channel retailer in the United States. Its stores and Website offer apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty, and home products. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.6% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 30.8% compared with the Retail - Regional Department Stores industry’s projected rise of 21.4%. The company has outperformed the broader industry so far this year (+51.2% vs +42.4%). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Burlington Stores, Inc. (BURL - Free Report) operates as a retailer of branded apparel products in the United States. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.5% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 42.6% compared with the Retail - Discount Stores industry’s expected rise of 18.8%.%. The company has outperformed the broader industry in the year-to-date period (+39.9% vs +26.8%).
Fossil Group, Inc. (FOSL - Free Report) designs, develops, markets, and distributes consumer fashion accessories. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 32.1% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is more than 100% compared with the Retail - Apparel and Shoes industry’s expected rise of 9.6%. The company has outperformed the broader industry so far this year (+141.8% vs -2.6%).
More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone!
It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 27 billion devices in just 3 years, creating a $1.7 trillion market.
Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 6 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2020.
Image: Bigstock
5 Top Retail Stocks to Buy Ahead of a Strong Holiday Season
Retailers are psyched up as usual for the holiday shopping season — mid-November to late January — with a record number of shoppers, especially online, expected this time.
Spending is likely to surge as the economy is in good shape and consumers are quite confident about their well-being. Thus, it’s time to invest in some solid retail stocks that are likely to make the most of the bullish sentiments.
Retailers to End 2018 With a Bang
According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), holiday retail sales in November and December — excluding automobiles, gasoline and restaurants — will jump between 4.3% and 4.8% from last year to reach a total of $717.45 billion to $720.89 billion. The projections, in fact, show an average annual increase of 3.9% over the past five years.
(Source: National Retail Federation)
The NRF and Prosper Insights & Analytics reports added that consumers are willing to spend an average of $1,007.24 during the upcoming holiday season, up 4.1% from the projection of $967.13 for last year. The holiday shopping is expected to start this month and next, while a few started as early as last month.
The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), in the meantime, offered a slightly more conservative projection. Still, it remains a healthy 3.8% increase from last year. ICSC also noted that November and December are the busiest shopping months, while most number of people is planning to begin shopping before Thanksgiving.
ICSC surmises that 96% of shoppers are willing to make purchases from retailers who have both a physical store as well as online presence, with 91% of shoppers buying at physical locations. It noted that 92% of millennials plan to spend in physical stores. Deloitte, in its 33 rd annual Holiday Survey of consumer spending and trends, too chipped in and said that 62% of total spend is expected to be online, mass merchant stores (52%), department stores (32%) followed by off-price retailers (28%).
Last but not the least, Moody’s projects overall holiday sales growth of 5% to 6%, pretty much above the long-term average, while eMarketer projects growth of 6%, the highest growth rate since 2011.
Why Consumers Are Ready to Spend More
NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay rightly said that “thanks to a healthy economy and strong consumer confidence, we believe that this holiday season will continue to reflect the growth we’ve seen over the past year.”
In the last two quarters, the U.S. economy recorded the fastest six-month growth in four years and is on track to hit the Trump administration’s annual growth target of 3%. If that happens, it would be the best yearly performance since 2005, two years before the Great Recession.
The U.S. economy got a boost in the third quarter, with GDP increasing at an annualized pace of 3.5%, per the U.S. Commerce Department. In fact, the country’s total output of goods and services followed an even stronger 4.2% growth in the second quarter.
At the same time, consumers in America are currently most confident in almost two decades, courtesy of a healthy labor market. Their assessment of present-day conditions is encouraging, making them confident of continued economic expansion, at least in the near term.
The consumer confidence index climbed to 137.9 last month from 135.3 in September, per the Conference Board, a business research organization.
(Source: The Conference Board)
People’s confidence in the present situations improved from 169.4 in September to 172.8 last month, matching the highest level reached in December 2000. The future expectations index also moved from 112.5 to 114.6, an 18-year high (read more: Consumer Confidence Leaps to 18-Year High: 5 Big Gainers).
Holiday Season to be a Good One for Retailers: 5 Picks
Taking the bullish holiday sales trend into account, retailers are undoubtedly set to witness a strong year-end rally. At the same time, retailers are already off to a good start this earnings season. Of the 19 retail companies that have reported Q3 earnings so far, 37.5% are up from the same period last year on 10.7% higher revenues, with 89.5% beating earnings estimates and 63.2% beating revenue estimates (read more: Can Retail Stocks Build on Their Recent Gains?).
Hence, it will be prudent to invest in five of the best retail stocks for handsome returns. Such stocks have a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy).
Nordstrom, Inc. (JWN - Free Report) provides apparel, shoes, cosmetics, and accessories for women, men, young adults, and children in the United States. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2.T he Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.3% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is almost 21% compared with the Retail - Apparel and Shoes industry’s expected growth of 9.6%. The company has outperformed the broader industry so far this year (+38.1% vs -2.6%).
RH (RH - Free Report) operates as a retailer in the home furnishings. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.1% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 150.2% compared with the Retail - Home Furnishings industry’s expected rise of 12.1%. The company has outperformed the broader industry in the year-to-date period (+45.5% vs -9.3%).
Kohl's Corporation (KSS - Free Report) operates as an omni-channel retailer in the United States. Its stores and Website offer apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty, and home products. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.6% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 30.8% compared with the Retail - Regional Department Stores industry’s projected rise of 21.4%. The company has outperformed the broader industry so far this year (+51.2% vs +42.4%). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Burlington Stores, Inc. (BURL - Free Report) operates as a retailer of branded apparel products in the United States. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 0.5% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 42.6% compared with the Retail - Discount Stores industry’s expected rise of 18.8%.%. The company has outperformed the broader industry in the year-to-date period (+39.9% vs +26.8%).
Fossil Group, Inc. (FOSL - Free Report) designs, develops, markets, and distributes consumer fashion accessories. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings rose 32.1% in the last 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is more than 100% compared with the Retail - Apparel and Shoes industry’s expected rise of 9.6%. The company has outperformed the broader industry so far this year (+141.8% vs -2.6%).
More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone!
It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 27 billion devices in just 3 years, creating a $1.7 trillion market.
Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 6 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2020.
Click here for the 6 trades >>