Would you buy a used Apple (AAPL) iPad? It seems that the market for used electronics is booming. Much of it is resold to developing countries. But even here in the U.S. consumers are dumping their old iPads and buying the new iPad2, the Financial Times reports.

That sets up a huge secondary market. The big beneficiaries are eBay (EBAY) and the Apple Store. On eBay, for example, sales jumped from 3,300 to 7,700 in a week with prices dropping from $531 to $484 in just one week. If buyers had done some research they could have bought the same unit from the Apple Store for $399, according to the FT.

Best Buy (BBY) is a specialty electronics retailer that competes with general retailers like Wal-Mart (WMT) and Costco (COST), as well as other specialty retailers like GameStop and Radio Shack (RSH). Our price estimate for Best Buy stands at $38.48, which is about 20% above market price.

The company's stock has struggled to gain ground since Best Buy's earnings release in December 2010. Best Buy has faced limited demand for featured products like 3D TVs, and appears to have underestimated competition from players like Wal-Mart and Amazon.com (AMZN).

Discount retailer Target Corporation (TGT) announced today that starting October 3 its stores will start to carry all six models of the popular new Apple, Inc. (AAPL) iPad.

While this is not the first time that Apple has teamed up with outside retailers, Target is the largest retailer to date that has agreed to sell the iPad.

You can already buy iPad in some Best Buy stores, and the company has announced that starting this Sunday it will be selling the device at all of its U.S. stores. In addition to facing competition from Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY), Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT) is also rumored to begin selling iPads in stores soon.

Early Tuesday morning, Best Buy (BBY) announced that its first-quarter profit increased to $155 million from $153 million a year ago. While the overall profit was slightly higher, the per-share results of 36 cents matched those from a year ago. These results fell 14 cents short of the consensus estimate.

The electronics retailer also maintained its full-year earnings of $3.45 to $3.60 per share, which surrounds the $3.50 per share expected by the Street.

Best Buy (BBY) will be reporting results for the first quarter tomorrow. Is there an earnings trade here?

Not from where I sit. Nevertheless, I expect decent results. The chain has been consistent in terms of going beyond expectations in recent times. And according to Pallavi Gogoi, Apple's (AAPL) iPad device, as well as a willingness on the part of consumers to continue opening their collective wallet for various electronic items, may bring solid news for shareholders. A profit of 50 cents per share is forecast, and I'd say there is a fair chance we will be reading about a beat on the bottom line.

Jabil Circuit (JBL), a tech entity that provides solutions to companies in the electronics industry, experienced some heavy selling after the market read through the second-quarter release. In fact, at the time of this writing, my screen was showing the shares down by almost 10%. And, as you can imagine, volume was compelling.

Things didn't seem too bad. Income on a core basis came in at 29 cents per diluted share. Last year at this time, the business took in 13 cents per diluted share on the same basis. According to Reuters, that 29-cent figure beat estimates by a penny. Plus, the guidance for the third quarter looks relatively good, at least to me, compared to what the analysts were thinking.

RadioShack (RSH), an electronics chain in competition with Best Buy (BBY) and Wal-Mart (WMT), posted fourth-quarter results on Monday after the bell. Sales increased well over 4%. Same-store sales at company-operated locations and kiosks in the United States expanded by over 6%. The bottom line jumped 25% to 60 cents per share.

RadioShack had a relatively strong quarter. Gross margin improved, as did the cash and cash equivalents line on the balance sheet (long-term debt went down, too). Cash from operations for the full year did contract by 10%; it would have been nice to see an increase in cash flow to go along with the rest of the data set, but at least the bottom line was ahead of estimates (if only by a penny).

The 2009 equity market recovery has led to an increase in Q ratios for the world's largest retailers. What does this mean? They're using their tangible assets effectively and have demonstrated the strength of intangible factors, such as brand and operational efficiency, to create shareholder value.

"Q" is the ratio of a public company's market capitalization to the market value of its tangible assets. So, a Q ratio of above one means that investors value the company's non-tangible assets -- e.g., brand, differentiation, innovation, customer experience and customer loyalty -- and see these factors as reasons to pay a higher price per share. A company with a Q ratio of below one can't generate a sufficient return on its physical assets. According to Deloitte, this could create an arbitrage opportunity, as it may be ripe for an acquisition.

The first estimates for the holiday shopping season have come in. MasterCard (MA) Advisors unit SpendingPulse, which tracks retail spending, puts the result at a year-over-year increase of 3.6%. This includes all form of payment and does not factor in gas and auto sales. The increase comes relative to the 2008 holiday season, which was the worst season in decades for retailers thanks to the global financial crisis.

Says Kamalesh Rao, director of economic research at SpendingPulse, "Last year the economy and consumer spending were in free fall. This year we're talking about an environment that has stabilized, that has seen a leveling off." But, that doesn't mean it's turned the corner yet. Holiday spending isn't enough to cure what ails us.