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After the Fall: Retail Stocks Upside Potential Remains (COST, WMT, TGT, M, KSS, JCP, GPS, LTD, AEO, ANF, TJX, DG)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 24 May 2012 15:22:09 +0000

Retailers have fared better than many other sectors over the past year, with the majority of share prices having risen although price to book values remain negative. Thus, either the sector is undervalued or there is something amiss.

When the stores reported first quarter earnings, the preponderance of guidance pointed to slower sales in the second quarter likely based on sales pulled forward into the first quarter due to warm weather. But it could be the case that falling gasoline prices are giving sales a lift in May that could continue through June. According to the latest report from Retail Metrics, retailers are on track to post a comparable store sales gain of 3.6% in May, excluding the negative effect of lost sales at Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) due to its being dropped by pharmacy benefits management firm Express Scripts Inc. (NASDAQ: ESRX).

We looked at a dozen retailers with an eye toward discerning value opportunities for investors: Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST), Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT), Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M), Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS), J.C. Penney Company Inc. (NYSE: JCP), Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS), Limited Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD), American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO), Abercrombie & Fitch Inc. (NYSE: ANF), The TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX), and Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG).

Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) traded at $84.14 and has a market value of around $37 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $86.83 and the 52-week range is $70.22-$92.10. Costco has a dividend yield of 1.3%. The implied upside to the consensus target is just 3%, and we would note that the target is below the 52-week high.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) traded at $64.65 and has a market value of around $220 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $65.28 and the 52-week range is $48.31-$64.88 (new high set today). Walmart has a dividend yield of 2.5%. The implied upside to the consensus target is barely 1%, but we would note that the target is still above the 52-week high.

Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) traded at $56.84 and has a market value of around $38 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $63.65 and the 52-week range is $45.28-$58.95. Target has a dividend yield of 2.1%. The implied upside to the consensus target is 12%, and we note again that the target is above the 52-week high.

Filed under: Dividend, Economy, Retail, Value Investing Tagged: AEO, ANF, COST, DG, GPS, JCP, KSS, LTD, M, TGT, TJX, WMT

Kohl’s, Nordstrom Disappoint, Dillard’s Shines (KSS, JWN, DDS, M, SKS, JCP)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:55:23 +0000

Lost in the last night’s commotion over the $2 billion loss at JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) were weak reports from retail Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN), Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS), and Dillard’s Inc. (NYSE: DDS). Kohl’s reported EPS of $0.63, better than the consensus estimate of $0.61 on revenue of $4.2 billion. Nordstrom reported EPS of $0.70 versus a consensus estimate of $0.75. Dillard’s beat EPS estimates by $0.18, at $1.85.

Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) reported earnings earlier this week and beat estimates on both the top and bottom lines. The company’s stock still got beaten down on a weak forecast, and that is what happened to both Nordstrom and Kohl’s as well. Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS) reports next Wednesday and the consensus estimates call for EPS of $0.18 on revenues of $764.4 million. J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) also reports next Wednesday and is expected to post an EPS loss of -$0.10 on revenues of $3.48 billion.

A beat, though, doesn’t look like it will mean much. What matters now to investors is guidance. Macy’s guided full-year EPS below the consensus estimate and got whacked. Kohl’s guided second-quarter EPS to $0.96-$1.02, below the consensus estimate of $1.11. Nordstrom reiterated its full-year EPS guidance at $3.30-$3.45, below the consensus estimate of $3.48. That’s just not good enough. Dillard’s did the smart thing and did not offer any information on guidance.

Kohl’s shares are down -0.4% just before noon today, at $48.47 in a 52-week range of $42.14-$57.39. Nordstrom’s shares are down -2.8% at $52.02 in a 52-week range of $37.28-$57.75.

Dillard’s shares are up 8.3% at $71.70, after posting a new 52-week high of $71.97 earlier this morning. The previous range was $38.99-$67.22. Dillard’s same-store sales report for May could reinforce the company’s new growth pattern — or turn it south again. Dillard’s offered no hints, so all’s well today.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Earnings Warning, Retail Tagged: DDS, JCP, JWN, KSS, M, SKS

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (ORCL, NOV, MMM, TEVA, JDSU, AMCX, MT, HNR, KSS, WIN, DDS, JKS, PGR, SOL, URRE, MNST, WFR)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:04:02 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened significantly higher this morning as investors were heartened by yesterday’s nationalization of Spain’s Bankia. The Bank of England also keps rates and asset purchases stable. This morning’s report on new US claims for unemployment benefits was in-line with expectations (our coverage here). US natural gas inventories rose last week, but the increase was also in-line with expectations (our coverage here).The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.01% at 80.077. The GSCI commodity index is down fractionally at 648.28, with commodities mostly higher on the small change in the dollar. WTI crude oil closed up 0.3% at $97.08/barrel and Brent crude trades down -0.37% at $112.78/barrel. Gold settled up 0.1% today, at $1,595.50/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly XX points to XXX (XX%), the NASDAQ rose more than XX points (XXX%) to XXX, and the S&P 500 rose XX% or nearly X points to XXX.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) cut to ‘hold’ at ThinkEquity; National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NYSE: NOV) maintained ‘buy’ with a lowered target price of $90 at Argus; 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) cut to ‘market perform’ at Bernstein; Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. (NASDAQ: TEVA) cut to ‘hold’ at Needham; and JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU) raised to ‘buy’ at UBS.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX) is up 2.4% at $40.58; ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) is up 1.9% at $16.42; Harvest Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: HNR) is down -1.6% at $5.71 after posting a new 52-week low of $5.44 earlier today; Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS) is down -4.6% at $48.52; and Windstream Corp. (NASDAQ: WIN) is down -10.3% at $10.10 after posting a new 52-week low of $9.42 earlier today.

On Friday we are scheduled to get earnings from Dillard’s Inc. (NYSE: DDS), Jinkosolar Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: JKS), Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA), Progressive Corp. (NYSE: PGR), ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE: SOL), and Uranium Resources Inc. (NASDAQ: URRE).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST) is up 9.2% at $71.34 in a 52-week range of $32.35-$83.96. The energy drinks company posted strong results, but buyout rumors continue to lead the charge. More coverage here.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) is down -24.3% at $2.46 after posting a new 52-week low of $2.41 earlier today. The solar component supplier posted bad results and a weak outlook. More coverage here.

We also took a detailed look today at short interest in a number of stocks — big names, volume leaders, and cult stocks.

Stay tuned for Friday. Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher is giving a speech. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Producer price index
9:55 a.m. – Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AMCX, DDS, HNR, JDSU, JKS, KSS, MMM, MNST, MT, NOV, ORCL, PGR, SOL, TEVA, URRE, WFR, WIN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (AIG, COP, HSY, PSX, DMD, AOL, AGU, DTG, M, MPEL, TM, SODA, AMCX, MT, ESRX, MCP, JWN, NUAN, HNR, KSS, PEIX, CPWM, AMRS, ACI)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 09 May 2012 20:06:42 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened sharply lower again this morning as investors consider Greece’s commitment to the austerity measures it had previously agreed to. Renegotiating the deal seems out of the question (more coverage here) and there is even the threat that the EU will not pay the first tranche of the bailout deal when it is due tomorrow (more coverage here). US oil inventories rose last week, putting more pressure on prices today (more coverage here).The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.43% at 80.077. The GSCI commodity index is down -0.5% at 648.60, with commodities mixed on the stronger dollar. WTI crude oil closed down -0.5% at $96.71/barrel and Brent crude trades up 0.02% at $112.75/barrel. Gold settled down -0.6% today, at $1,594.20/ounce, the yellow metal’s first sub-$1,600/ounce closing since December.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 97 points to 12,835.44 (-0.75%), the NASDAQ fell more than11 points (-0.39%) to 2,934.71, and the S&P 500 fell 0.67% or more than 9 points to 1,354.61.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) raised to ‘buy’ at Goldman Sachs; ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) resumed as ‘neutral’ at Credit Suisse; The Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) raised to ‘buy’ at Argus; Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) started as ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and Demand Media Inc. (NYSE: DMD) raised to ‘buy’ at Citigroup.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL) is up 3.8% at $26.55; Agrium Inc. (NYSE: AGU) is down -2.2% at $82.69 (more coverage here); Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. (NYSE: DTG) is up 0.2% at $80.68; Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) is down -3.6% at $38.07 (more coverage here); Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL) is down -0.2% at $13.96; Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) is up 3.1% at $80.58; and SodaStream International Ltd. (NASDAQ: SODA) is up 28% at $37.35.

On Wednesday we are scheduled to get earnings from AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX), ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT), Express Scripts Holding Co. (NASDAQ: ESRX), Molycorp Inc. (NYSE: MCP); Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN); Nuance Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN); Harvest Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: HNR); Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS); and Pacific Ethanol Inc. (NASDAQ: PEIX).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Cost Plus Inc. (NASDAQ: CPWM) is up 21.9% at $21.92 after posting a new 52-week high earlier today. The company is being acquired by Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) for $495 million.

Amyris Inc. (NASDAQ: AMRS) is down -21.7% at $1.98 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.89 earlier today. The biofuels and biotech company posted much higher-than-expected shortfalls in both EPS and revenues.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) is up 10.1% at $8.37. The coal miner had no news today, but investors are piling in at a very low price. Volume today topped 25 million shares, more than double Arch’s daily average.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Minneapolis Fed President Naryana Kocherlakota are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – International trade report
8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
1:00 p.m. – 30-year note auction
2:00 p.m. – Treasury budget
4:30 p.m. – Federal Reserve balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: General Tagged: ACI, AGU, AIG, AMCX, AMRS, AOL, BBBY, COP, CPWM, DMD, DTG, ESRX, HNR, HSY, JWN, KSS, M, MCP, MPEL, MT, NUAN, PEIX, PSX, SODA, TM

Cautious Consumers Cancel Macy’s Results (M, JWN, SKS, JCP, KSS, DDS)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 09 May 2012 13:11:25 +0000

Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) reported first quarter results this morning that beat estimates on both EPS and revenues. The soft spot was the company’s guidance, and that is taking the stock down sharply in pre-market trading.

The company leads off earnings seasons for a number of big department stores, all of which will be announcing results in the next couple of weeks. Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) reports earnings tomorrow and is expected to post EPS of $0.75 on revenue of $2.52 billion. Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS) also reports tomorrow, and the consensus estimate for EPS is $0.61 and for revenue the estimate is $4.25 billion. Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS) reports next Wednesday and the consensus estimates call for EPS of $0.18 on revenues of $764.4 million. J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) also reports next Wednesday and is expected to post an EPS loss of -$0.10 on revenues of $3.48 billion. Dillard’s Inc. (NYSE: DDS) has not yet scheduled its announcement, but the estimates call for EPS of $1.67 on revenue of $1.53 billion.

Macy’s grew EPS by 43%, from $0.30 a year ago to $0.43 in the first quarter of 2012. Sales rose 4.4% year-over-year, from $5.89 billion to $6.15 billion. The consensus estimates called for EPS of $0.40 on revenue of $6.13 billion.

Where Macy’s failed to impress was its outlook for full-year EPS. The company reiterated guidance of $3.25-$3.30. The consensus estimate had been $3.41. Same-store sales in April were also a weight, rising just 1.2%, well below the consensus estimate for 1.9% growth.

Macy’s cost of sales rose slightly and margins fell slightly, from 39.1% to 38.8%. Strong sales in March due to an early Easter and warm weather did not flow into April as consumers grew more cautious about purchases.

The company’s shares are down -4.3% at $37.70 in pre-market trading this morning, within a 52-week range of $22.66-$42.17.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Earnings, Retail Tagged: DDS, JCP, JWN, KSS, M, SKS

April Same-store Sales Headed for a Fall (WAG, KSS, SKS, JCP, TJX, XRT)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 16:32:21 +0000

US retailers will report April same-store sales results this week and the outlook calls for a substantial drop from March’s gain of 3.9% to an April rise of just 1.4%. The data comes from research firm Retail Metrics Inc.

The consensus estimate for a same-store sales gains is down -0.1% from a week ago as a result of lowered forecasts from Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) and Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS). Other top retailers taking share price hits today include Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS) down nearly -4%, J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) down about -1%, and The TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) down about -1.3%.

Other factors contributing to the lower expectations include the early Easter holiday which pulled sales into March, warm weather in Feburary and March, a late Mother’s day that will push marginal sales into May, and a very high comparison to an 8.7% same-store sales jump in April 2011.

Retail Metrics notes that “the state of the American consumer remains somewhat fragile:”

Unemployment is still entrenched north of 8%, gasoline prices near $4/gallon but looking to have peaked, consumer confidence mixed, … housing and home prices searching for a bottom, growing concerns over a third straight annual economic soft patch, and the weekly initial jobless claims four-week moving average having ticked up again last week.

The research firm also noted that of 19 retailers reporting first quarter results for fiscal quarters ending in March, 16 beat expectations and 15 posted higher year-over-year earnings growth. On the basis of those numbers, Research Metrics now expects first quarter retail earnings to rise 10%, up from an earlier forecast of 8.7%.

Combining the two months of March and April, same-store sales are expected to gain 2.8%, “well below” the average increase for the last 14 months of 4.7% growth. The 2012 growth is also lower than either 2010 (5.2%) or 2011 (4.6%). Some of this year’s drop is attributed to the much higher comparable sales in 2011, as we’ve already noted.

The SPDR S&P Retail ETF (AMEX: XRT) posted a new 52-week high this morning of $63.03 before giving some of the gain back to trade at $62.03 at about 12:30 p.m. The ETF has gained nearly 18% in the past 12 months though it is down slightly for the year-to-date.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Consumer Goods, Retail Tagged: JCP, KSS, SKS, TJX, WAG, XRT

Adjusting Retail Sales Expectations Mostly Higher (M, KSS, JWN, TJX, ROST, GPS, BKE, WTSLA)

Administrator — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 14:00:07 +0000

The research firm Retail Metrics is out signaling better than expected retail sales should be the norm this week when companies report their March same-store sales figures. The report noted that February sales and traffic were strong with comparable sales up 4.2% and it expects that trend looks to have continued in March.

Many factors are cited: an earlier Easter holiday by 16 days this year, very favorable weather conditions, improving employment, well received colorful spring merchandise assortments, rising consumer confidence, and pent up demand.

While estimates have been moving higher, Retail Metrics expects that retailers should surprise on the upside for a fourth consecutive month. It does warn, however, that the gains in March may come at the expense of April and it also noted that retailers face a very steep 8.7% comparison with April 2011 and that makes for an uphill battle.

The report noted that (after falling over the weekend) department store forecasts turned up and now stand at 4.2%. Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M), Kohl’s Corporation (NYSE: KSS), and Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) all experienced 20 basis point upward moves to their consensus estimates. Other gains in expectations were as follows: The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TJX) with a 130 basis point rise; Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST) with a full 100 basis point rise; Zumiez, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) with a 60 basis point rise; and eve Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) showing a 40 basis point rise.

Buckle Inc. (NYSE: BKE) is expected to be one of the surprise reduced forecasts by 70 basis points, but its stock is with 2% of a 52-week high. Another large reduction was an 80 basis point tempering of expectations from the Wet Seal Inc. (NASDAQ: WTSLA) and its stock has been very weak in the last year.

We should be getting most of the same-store sales reports on Wednesday and Thursday of this week ahead of the Easter weekend.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Apparel, Consumer Goods, Economy, Retail Tagged: BKE, GPS, JWN, KSS, M, ROST, TJX, WTSLA

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (JNJ, KSS, WTW, DHI, LEN, TOL, ACI, ALIM, ZUMZ, ARO, ANN, CCL, FGP, HALO, URRE, JVA, QSFT, ASTM, DYN, ZGNX, GMCR)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 21:05:53 +0000

US equities opened higher this morning following the report on a US non-farm payroll gain of 227,000 jobs (more coverage here). In Europe, the Greek debt swap deal went off smoothly, but the declaration late this afternoon by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) that the swap was, in fact, a “credit event” sent stocks down sharply though the three major indexes remain in positive territory about half an hour before the markets close. The dollar opened up this morning and got stronger as the day went on, with the dollar index now up 1.07% at 79.987. Crude oil was up today, with WTI crude settling up 0.8% at $107.40/barrel and Brent crude trading up 0.29% at $125.80/barrel. Gold settled higher by 0.8% at $1,711.50/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up 14 points to 12,921.94 (0.11%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 18 points (0.6%) to 2,988.34, and the S&P 500 rose 0.36% or nearly 5 points to 1,370.87.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) started as ‘hold’ at Jefferies; Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS) raised to ‘buy’ at Jefferies; Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) started as ‘overweight’ (!) at Barclays; D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI), Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN), and Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) all raised to ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) cut to ‘market perform’ at BMO.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Alimera Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ALIM) is down -3.4% at $4.00; Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) is up 5.7% at $34.16 after posting a new 52-week high of $34.44 earlier today; Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) is up 2.6% at $19.45; Ann Inc. (NYSE: ANN) is up 6% at $27.36; Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) is down -1.2% at $30.57 (more coverage here); Ferrellgas Partners LP (NYSE: FGP) is down -2.6% at $16.80; Halozyme Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: HALO) is down -1.8% at $11.30; and Uranium Resources Inc. (NASDAQ: URRE) is up 3.1% at $1.00.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Coffee Holding Co. Inc. (NASDAQ: JVA) is up nearly 38% at $10.81. The integrated coffee roaster and distributor posted better-than-expected quarterly results this morning.

Quest Software Inc. (NASDAQ: QSFT) is up more than 24% at $24.09. The firm has agreed to be acquired at $23/share. More coverage here.

Aastrom Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTM) is up more than 21% at $2.21. The biotechnology company has completed a private placement of $40 million in Series B convertible preferred stock. More coverage here.

Dynegy Inc. (NYSE: DYN) is down more than -38% at $0.72 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.59 earlier today. A Delaware court ruled that the company had engaged in a “fraudulent transfer” of assets prior to its bankruptcy filing.

Zogenix Inc. (NASDAQ: ZGNX) is down nearly -18% at $2.05. The drug maker posted a wider than expected loss after the markets closed yesterday.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) is down nearly -16% at $52.61. The company is being hit hard by yesterday’s announcement from Starbucks Inc. (NASDAQ: SBUX) that it will launch a single-cup espresso and coffee machine to compete with the Keurig products from Green Mountain. More coverage here and here.

Stay tuned for Monday. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

11:30 a.m. – 3- and 6-month Treasury bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 3-year Treasury note auction
2.00 p.m. – US Treasury budget report

Have a great weekend.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: ACI, ALIM, ANN, ARO, ASTM, CCL, DHI, DYN, FGP, GMCR, HALO, JNJ, JVA, KSS, LEN, QSFT, TOL, URRE, WTW, ZGNX, ZUMZ

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ACI, CAB, CHL, DKS, DHI, GFIG, GMCR, HLF, JNJ, KBH, KSS, LEN, LPNT, MDT, TOL, WTW)

Administrator — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 13:20:08 +0000

These are some of this Friday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls.

Arch Coal, Inc. (NYSE: ACI) Cut to Market Perform at BMO.

Cabela’s, Inc. (NYSE: CAB) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

China Mobile Limited (NYSE: CHL) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) Started as Buy at Argus.

D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

GFI Group (NASDAQ: GFIG) Raised to Outperform at Keefe Bruyette & Woods.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) Started as Overweight at Barclays.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) Started as Hold at Jefferies.

KB Home (NYSE: KBH) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Kohl’s Corporation (NYSE: KSS) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

LifePoint Hospitals, Inc. (NASDAQ: LPNT) Started as Buy at Cantor Fitzgerald.

Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) Cut to Sell at Argus.

Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) Started as Overweight at Barclays.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox. We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: ACI, CAB, CHL, DHI, DKS, GFIG, GMCR, HLF, JNJ, KBH, KSS, LEN, LPNT, MDT, TOL, WTW

Retail Sales Push Higher in February (COST, TGT, KSS, JWN, SKS, SSI, M, GPS, TJX, LTD, ROST, SMRT, WTSLA, BKE, ZUMZ)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 16:53:35 +0000

Retailers have been posting same-store sales figures for February this morning, and most are posting better-than-expected numbers — in some cases, much better than expected. We have reports from 15 companies: Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST), Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT, Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS), Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN), Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS), Stage Stores Inc. (NYSE: SSI), Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M), Gap Stores Inc. (NYSE: GPS), TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX), Limited Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD), Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST), Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT), Wet Seal Inc. (NASDAQ: WTSLA), The Buckle Inc. (NYSE: BKE), and Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ).

Some highlights:

Costco sales rose 8%, but shares are flat shortly before noon.
Macy’s posted a same-store sales jump of 4.6%, and the company’s shares hit a 52-week high of $38.38.
TJX’s sales rose 9% and the shares posted a new 52-week high of $37.07.
Ross Stores’ sales jumped 9% as well, and the company’s stock put up a new 52-week high of $54.27.
Buckle’s same-store sales rose a whopping 14.8%, and the shares posted a new 52-week high of $48.43.
Zumiez’s sales rose 14.2% in February and the stock put up a new 52-week high of $33.84.

The biggest change came from Gap Stores. The company posted a same-store sales jump of 4%, when analysts were expecting a shortfall of -1.4%. Shares posted a new 52-week high of $26.00, more than $2/share above the previous high.

Kohl’s and Wet Seal were the only stores on this list to show sales dips, but Wet Seal’s dip was only half what had been expected. Kohl’s was expected to break even, but same-store sales fell -0.8%.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: BKE, COST, GPS, JWN, KSS, LTD, M, ROST, SKS, SMRT, SSI, TGT, TJX, WTSLA, ZUMZ