If you haven't already and you can tolerate moderate risk, now's the time to purchase shares of The TJX Companies (TJX) and I'm reiterating my buy rating, first recommended on June 22, 2009 at a price of $21.48. If you bought TJX in June, you're up about an impressive 80%.

Off-price family apparel and home fashion retailer TJX (operator of the T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods chains) is in the discount retail sweet spot: it's poised to gain market share in the era of the 'frugal consumer.'

This afternoon, Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) reported its fiscal first quarter numbers, and the company was able to put up better than expected earnings numbers, but revenues came in slightly under expectations.

As we noted in our earnings preview yesterday, analysts had been expecting to see the company show earnings of 97 cents per share, and the actual earnings figure was a bit higher at $1.04 per share. For the same period last year the company showed earnings of $1.03 per share.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) will get its chance to impress Wall Street when it reports its most recent quarterly results Tuesday following the market close. The company will be reporting its fiscal first quarter numbers, and analysts are expecting slightly lower numbers that its first quarter last year.

The giant in sports apparel and footwear last reported earnings back on June 24 when it was able to outpace analyst estimates, and this time around analysts are looking for the company to show earnings of 97 cents per share. In its first quarter last year, the company reported earnings of $1.03 per share.

After filing for bankruptcy protection a month ago, Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc. (OTC: EBHIQ) is already seeing the suitors line up. Iconix Brand Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ICON), which owns Rocawear, is showing some interest. Hilco Consumer Capital and Gordon Brothers Group LLC are also looking to make a joint offer for the embattled clothing retailer, and Golden Gate Capital is said to be interested. Hudson Capital Partners LLC may throw its hat in the ring, as well.

Tomorrow's the bidding deadline, and there's an auction lined up for Eddie Bauer's assets on Thursday.

Already in the game, CCMP Capital Advisors ponied up $202 million in a "stalking horse bid," meaning that it will make the acquisition if nobody else beats its offer.

For now, Bauer's is living on borrowed time -- and cash. The company got court permission to take a loan for $100 million to keep the operation moving until an acquisition or auction is complete.

The private equity firms rumored to be eyeing Eddie Bauer have retail and apparel companies in their portfolios, which suggests a possibility that the company could be turned around with the right investment and management team. If not, I wonder if they'll sell the window decorations at the auction . . . always wanted my living room to look like a mall.

Following up on my Nike (NYSE: NKE) post from last week, you just knew I would have to comment on Nike's earnings report, right? Bottom line, it was a rough report and the short-term outlook is bleak as far as future orders go -- but all is not lost for Nike.

Here are the reasons to be optimistic. First, this is Nike, ladies and gentlemen. This is the company that has the biggest of the big names in its stable of athletes: Michael Jordan, Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James, to name just a few. This ensures that Nike will continue to be in the discussion as long as these athletes are at the top of their game.

The retail space is littered with misplaced ideals, impossible ideas, and problematic business models. Hence it is best avoided, given the U.S.'s pronounced recession.

But an opportunity or two still exists for investors who can tolerate high risk, and Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) is one.

Retail is abysmal right now, and apparel is getting totally hammered.

But one segment of that market is holding up pretty well: clothing for teens. The USA Today reports that Buckle (NASDAQ: BKE), Hot Topic (NASDAQ: HOTT), and Aéropostale (NYSE: ARO) were the only specialty stores this week to report positive same-store sales in March.

Mary Brett Whitfield, senior vice president at the management consulting and research firm Retail Forward, told the newspaper that "Teens are still growing and might actually need new clothes."

Having already gained dominance in a huge swath of American retail consumer goods including toys, books, and electronics, the insatiable juggernaut of Bentonville has now set its sights on fashion -- again. Wal-Mart has always struggled with this fickle category, where threading the needle between cheap and cool was well nigh impossible.

Apparel maker Guess?, Inc. (NYSE: GES), competitor of Gap (NYSE: GPS), reported some fashionable stats for its third quarter on Thursday after the market close. Indeed, double-digit growth rates are always in style as far as Wall Street is concerned. Especially during this tough period for retail selling.

Guess? said that total net sales for Q3 increased over 12% to nearly $528 million. Diluted earnings per share expanded by over 11% to $0.69. This was a six-penny beat on the bottom line. You know, you can't really blame the analysts for missing this one by such a wide margin. Honestly, you would figure that a company like Guess? would have a difficult time moving its clothing and accessories with all the financial turmoil going on around it.

Management, apparently, wasn't asleep at the wheel. However, there are some important negatives to note. First, gross and operating margins slipped during the quarter. Second, comps at the company's retail locations dipped 0.8%. Third, guidance has changed to a lower range due to a conservative outlook. This is to be expected, certainly, since it is hard to believe that Guess? won't find some issues with its business model in the short-term considering that the brand premium associated with its jeans might not be viewed as the best value proposition out there by the struggling Christmas-shopping consumer.

Update Nov. 26, 2008: See all 2008 Black Friday deals.

This week, some apparel and accessory producers and retailers offer a look at how they've been doing between early summer's economic stimulus spending and the coming holiday season. While Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) reported higher earnings last week, Coldwater Creek Inc. (NASDAQ: CWTR), Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: EBHI), Kenneth Cole Productions Inc. (NYSE: KCP), and K-Swiss Inc. (NASDAQ: KSWS) all reported net losses as consumers pulled back on spending over the summer due to higher fuel prices and other economic worries. The expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial for such companies scheduled to report this week don't look much different; i.e., a bright spot or two among lower expectations overall.

Hip retailer Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) is expected to post earnings 22.9% higher than a year ago, to $0.35 per share, on revenue of $475.9 million (+26.4%). The Philadelphia-based company already said that same-store sales in the quarter were 10% higher. Urban Outfitters has beat expectations in recent quarters, by 11.5% in the previous quarter, and analysts on average recommend buying URBN. Shares fell to a 52-week low of $16.61 per share on Friday, and are down 29.5% from a year ago. Other companies expected to report more modest earnings growth in the coming week include watch and accessory maker Fossil Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL), retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), and TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX), parent of such discount retail chains as T.J. Maxx and Marshalls. These three companies have tended to top analysts estimates in recent quarters, and Fossil and TJX ended the week near their 52-week lows.

While Los Angeles-based American Apparel Inc. (AMEX: APP) had a strong second quarter, the casual wear maker is expected to report $0.13 per share earnings for the third quarter, the same as in the year-ago period. And analysts anticipate that Kohl's Corp. (NYSE: KSS) will report that profits fell 16.4% to $0.51 per share on revenue of $3.9 billion (+1.9%). Though same-store sales for October fell 9%, the Menomonee Falls, Wis.-based company reaffirmed its third-quarter forecast. Kohl's has offered positive surprises in recent quarters, topping estimates by 5.6% in the previous quarter. The consensus recommendation remains to buy KSS. Shares have been climbing after reaching a 52-week low in late October, but are still down 32.8% from a year ago.

In a sign that Americans are bracing themselves for hard times, or at least taking a break and holding their breath while they see what direction things go in, apparel chains reported September sales, which usually rise at this time of year, were not at all where stores expect them to be.

In a sign that customers are looking toward frugality, WalMart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) saw a small gain in sales, though not as much as analysts would have liked.

Look for this effect to hit other retail environments, not just apparel, if the market continues to be the top headline and spook customers.

Shares of sports shoes and apparel giant Nike (NYSE: NKE) are trading up over 5% after hours today, following strong earnings for its fiscal first quarter.

As I noted in my earnings preview earlier this week, Wall Street was looking for 92 cents earnings per share for Nike's first fiscal quarter. The company surprised to the upside with a reported EPS of $1.03 a share. While this is down year-over-year from the $1.12 EPS it reported last year in the first quarter, it was still a good quarter considering the current economic environment.

Revenues grew nicely for Nike in the quarter, up a very respectable 17% to $5.4 billion. This also came in above analyst estimates of $5.19 billion.

One aspect of the company's overall business I discussed in the preview was that last quarter the company was able to overcome weak U.S. sales numbers by posting strong growth in international markets. This quarter, too, a weak U.S. dollar has helped boost sales in India and Asia, in particular China, where the recent summer Olympic games were held.

Wednesday afternoon following the market close, Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) will be reporting its fiscal first quarter earnings, and analysts are looking to see the company show earnings for the quarter of 92 cents per share.

The last time that the company reported was back on June 25, when it was able to beat out Wall Street estimates by two pennies, with a reported 98 cents per share for its fiscal fourth quarter, mostly a result of strong international demand, which was able to overcome weak consumer spending that hurt the company at home in the U.S. In fact, to find the last time that the company reported quarterly figures under Wall Street estimates, you would have to go all the way back to its fiscal fourth quarter 2006 when it missed by a penny, with a reported 70 cents per share.

On a year over year basis, should Nike come in with 92 cents per share, it would be a 16.9% drop from the $1.12 that it was able to earn during the first quarter of 2007.

This post is one in a series on prominent company nicknames. See all 25, and share your thoughts and memories about Needless Markup below in the comments.

Neiman Marcus may be the most successful upscale retail department chain that selected shoppers love to hold a grudge against.

The chain caters to primarily female, upper-income and upper-middle shoppers, and features designer lines that rival boutique (and beyond) price levels.

Further, while some of the products are decidedly exclusive, some are not or appear to not be, according to shoppers, but the prices of these items remain in the stratosphere, and it is for this reason that the store was tagged with the nickname "Needless Markup."

Here's a classic example. About a year ago Marie Lang, sister of yours truly, was searching for a leather shoulder bag. She found a medium brown, designer bag she liked for $1,200 at Neiman Marcus. However, being a discerning/critical comparison shopper, Marie of course took a few days to scout the competition.

The result? She found a comparable shoulder bag at Bloomingdale's for $595. Had she been willing to take a slightly smaller bag, she could have secured one for $395.

It's a really bad time to be in low-end apparel. Levis Strauss, which is privately owned but has publicly-traded bonds and therefore reports its earnings, saw its second quarter operating income decline from $118 million to $52 million, driven by an 8% decline in revenue and increased selling, general and administrative costs.

President and CEO John Anderson commented that "The retail environment in the United States remained challenging. . . Increasingly difficult economic conditions in many markets worldwide are impacting consumer spending, but our brands remain strong."

The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) that the company's bonds that come due in 2015 have fallen to 95.75 cents on the dollar after 5.5 cent drop in the past week -- the debt carries junk ratings and, given the absolute garbage that's rated investment grade these days, that's saying something.

With all the awful reports coming out on fashion and apparel companies lately -- and the beatings the stocks have taken -- you have to wonder whether they're becoming a good contrarian play. People will buy new clothes eventually, won't they?