Retail Stocks Archive

Apple Earnings Soar as I Expected

Apple eally blew away Wall Street with its latest quarterly earnings, topping expectations and seeing shares soar as a result. Those of you who listened to my strong buy recommendation ahead of this earnings report are sitting on a nice profit as a result.

Aeropostale (ARO) and Buckle (BKE)

The key to the economy's future continues to be the consumer. As long as folks are out there buying, then the economy will only fall so far. Most consumer stocks, however, have been beaten down since consumer spending went down the drain last year. There are a few exceptions. My team and I have pinpointed two consumer stocks that are riding high, thanks to the strength of an unstoppable spending force.

My friends, that unstoppable force is called…teenagers. Aeropostale and Buckle are two retail stocks that are benefitting from teenagers' buying habits. Here's why these stocks deserve a place in your portfolio now.

Best and Worst Nasdaq Stocks

Nasdaq stocks have been on a tear lately, outpacing the market by a wide margin. But that doesn't mean all Nasdaq stocks are buys. I apply the same growth momentum criteria to all my stock picks. Here are my three favorite Nasdaq stocks to buy now and three Nasdaq losers to sell immediately.

5 Best Stocks to Buy Now

These days, every uptick or downtick in the market makes news. What often gets lost, though, is that the story of the market is a whole lot more than the major indexes and their daily or minute-by-minute movements. The market is a mosaic of thousands of unique stories.

AutoZone Is Booming

Thanks to the recession, stocks like Autozone (AZO) are soaring. Here's why Autozone is a great buy today.

Retail Sector Gets a Boost From Children's Clothing Stocks

The Children's Place and Buckle were among the clothing retailers that reported improved earnings today. See why these retail stocks are among my best stocks to buy now.

Buckle's Earnings Surge 44%

This has been a very tough environment for retailers, but my favorite teen retailer continues to do very well. Buckle (BKE) just reported outstanding first-quarter earnings of 58 cents a share.

Lowe's Knows Earnings Surprises

Lowe's (LOW), the home improvement store, just reported quarterly earnings of 32 cents a share. That's a good bit down from the 41 cents from a year ago. However, the expectations on Wall Street were for just 25 cents a share, so this was an encouraging report.

Preview of Week Ahead on Wall Street

On Monday, the major homebuilders will release their May housing index. It will be interesting to see if there's been more activity in this crucial sector. Then on Tuesday, Home Depot (HD), TJX (TJX), Medtronic (MDT) and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) are due to report earnings. We'll also get a report on housing starts.

Wal-Mart's Q1 Earnings

Wal-Mart (WMT) reported first-quarter earnings today. On surface, the results don't appear to be that strong, but when you look at the details, I think Wal-Mart is doing quite well.

Preview of This Week on Wall Street

This week will probably be quieter than the previous few weeks since earnings season is almost over. The big news this week will be the reports on wholesale and consumer inflation. If the news shows that inflation is creeping up, this could mean big trouble for the bond market.

Pantry Posts Huge Earnings Surprise, Nordic American Tanker Declares Dividend

Pantry (PTRY), one of my favorite Quantum Growth stocks, reported earnings of 10 cents a share this morning. That was 28 cents better than Wall Street's forecast. The company is the leading convenience store operator in the southeastern U.S. Since their March low, shares of Pantry are up more than 80%.

Preview for this Week on Wall Street

Earnings season is beginning to wind down. The two big news items this week will be the release of the bank stress test results on Thursday and the employment report on Friday. We may see the first signs that the economy is stabilizing.

Ken Lewis Out as BAC Chairman

The Dow rose 168.78 points today to close at 8185.73. That's the highest close since February 9. There were solid gains across many sectors. Pantry Inc. (PTRY), a favorite in my Quantum Growth service, soared over 15%. Smith & Wesson (SWHC), which is in my Emerging Growth service, jumped nearly 10%. One of the big news items today was that Ken Lewis lost his job as chairman of Bank of America (BAC). It's about time, I've never trusted him.

Which E-Business Stocks Are Hot and Which Are Not

These days, every uptick or downtick in the market makes news. What often gets lost, though, is that the story of the market is a whole lot more than the major indexes and their daily or minute-by-minute movements. The market is a mosaic of thousands of unique stories.

As Starbucks (SBUX) Stumbles, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) Shines

Starbucks was once a model of innovation. Today, the coffee company is a victim of overzealous expansion and the economic downturn. But coffee is still big business, and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters is in a great position to profit right now.

HHGregg Guides Higher

Today marks the unofficial beginning of first-quarter earnings season. After the closing bell, Alcoa (AA) will report its earnings for the first three months of 2009. It probably won't be a good report. Wall Street expects Alcoa to post a loss of 52 cents a share compared with a profit of 44 cents for the same period last year. The stock gets an "F - Strong Sell" in my Portfolio Grader stock-rating system.

My Final Four Portfolio Part 2

I eagerly await this weekend's NCAA Basketball Tournament. And I've selected four stocks -- one to represent each of the final four teams -- that deserve a place in your portfolio. You don't have to be a hoops fan to profit from these companies.

5 Stocks That Deserve a Place in Your Portfolio Today

These days, every uptick or downtick in the market makes news. What often gets lost, though, is that the story of the market is a whole lot more than the major indexes and their daily or minute-by-minute movements. The market is a mosaic of thousands of unique stories.

How Circuit City Saved Best Buy

Like many consumers, I was quite excited about the bankruptcy of Circuit City. As visions of bargains danced in my head, I never dreamed what would happen to competitor Best Buy. BBY enjoyed more foot traffic in the wake of Circuit City's closing and surprised Wall Street with greater-than-expected earnings. That is the way it goes in a recession. We consumers are savvy and sophisticated. As such, when prices fall, we expect them to fall further. Until they reach zero, prices can keep falling thus it always pays to wait till the last moment.

5 Hot Stocks in Ice-Cold Sectors

These days, every uptick or downtick in the market makes news. What often gets lost, though, is that the story of the market is a whole lot more than the major indexes and their daily or minute-by-minute movements. The market is a mosaic of thousands of unique stories.

Frugal Shoppers Lift Family Dollar Store Stock

Family Dollar Store stock was the S&P 500's biggest gainer in 2008. FDO is poised for another stellar performance this year. Here's why.

5 Hot Stocks in Ice-Cold Sectors

These days, every uptick or downtick in the market makes news. What often gets lost, though, is that the story of the market is a whole lot more than the major indexes and their daily or minute-by-minute movements. The market is a mosaic of thousands of unique stories. To get the true story, we need to dive down deeper into the individual names that make up the market. Here we find individual companies that are doing well, regardless of what sector they're in.

Tiffany & Co. Stock Benefits Even After Poor Earnings Release

In a not surprising announcement, Tiffany & Co (TIF) released earnings today that reflected the impact of the current economy on retailers specializing in luxury items. The company reported lower profits on fewer sales. Not expected, however has been the market reaction to the release. Trading in TIF as of midday lifted the stock up nearly 15%, as traders and investors viewed the earnings release and the Fiscal Year 2010 guidance as not as bad as expected.

Tiffany's Earnings Plunge 76%

The market continues to look strong today. At noon, we're up 319 points. Lately, I've been discussing how some high-end retailers are doing poorly while some at the low-end are thriving. Today Tiffany (TIF) reported that its quarterly profits fell 76%. Clearly, dismal holiday sales hurt their bottom line. As bad as their earnings were, they actually beat expectations so the stock is doing well today. For now, I rate Tiffany a hold. I rate Wal-Mart (WMT), which caters to more budget-minded shoppers, a strong buy.

Xerox Issues Profit Warning

Xerox (XRX) became the latest big-name company to warn of an earnings shortfall. The company said that its sales for January and February were 18% below last year's level. Earlier, Xerox had said to expect first-quarter earning between 16 and 20 cents per share. Now the company said that earnings will range between three and five cents per share. That's a major revision.

Retail Stocks Like Aeropostale Are Good Buys Now

In a classic illustration of market differentiation, apparel retailers catering to young men and women shoppers with quality merchandise at reasonable prices are continuing to enjoy robust, record sales in the midst of the disappearance of the consumer at other types of retailers. Parents and teenagers alike are finding merchandise at these stores attractive options for their limited shopping dollars.

Buckle (BKE) Is the Strongest Retail Stock

Apparently, no one told teenagers we're in a recession. Consider Buckle (BKE), the teen retailer, which continues to be one of my favorite retail stocks. This morning, the company reported fourth-quarter earnings of 74 cents a share which is an impressive increase over the 63 cents it earned during the fourth quarter of 2007. This comes at a time when many retail stocks are reporting big earnings drops and announcing layoffs.

What I Like in Retail Stocks

The retail sector continues to be in a lot of trouble. Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) just reported horrible earnings for the fourth quarter. Sales plunged 19%.