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Kohl's: Retail Sector Survivor and Winner

Kohl's (KSS) storeRetailer Kohl's Corp. (KSS) shares have retreated slightly since hitting a high near $58, but just look on that dip as an opportunity to scoop up shares.

Kohl's is a retail sector winner amid the most challenging economic conditions for retailers in decades.

Kohl's same-store sales will likely increase about 5% to 6% in this year, FY2012, along with decent traffic. Kohl's also plans to open about 40 new stores. How many other retail chains are opening stores in a big way in 2011? Very few.

Continue reading Kohl's: Retail Sector Survivor and Winner

Sears: A Retail Sector Laggard

It's been a strange marriage right from the start. Kmart, the discounter, joined with Sears, the department store retailer in 2005.
Both lines are in stiff competition with other brands, the USA Today reports. Kmart's competing with Walmart (WMT) and Target (TGT), while Sears's competitors include Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW).

The Kmart-Sears combo has been lagging in the retail sector. On Thursday, Sears Holdings (SHLD) posted a loss of $218 million or $1.98 per share, compared with a loss of $127 million or $1.09 per share in the period last year. Revenue fell 5% to $9.68 billion. Analysts had expected $9.89 billion.

Continue reading Sears: A Retail Sector Laggard

Retailers Enjoy Solid January, Led by Luxury Set

Shoppers spent more time – and money – in malls last month, with many retailers posting on Thursday strong results in what tends to be the final month of their fiscal year. The rich are doing a better job of prying open their wallets, as RetailMetrics, a research firm that covers the industry, reported that luxury retailers such as Saks (SKS) enjoyed larger gains in January than bargain stores. Signs of life in financial markets have made wealthier consumers more willing to spend ... and we all know that a recovery has to start someplace.

Continue reading Retailers Enjoy Solid January, Led by Luxury Set

P&G Tinkers with Direct-to-Consumer Model

Retailers don't like competition. As it is, they get enough of it from each other in the pursuit of razor-thin margins. It's standard practice to squeeze manufacturers for lower prices and more concessions as part of this battle.

For years, it's also been the norm for retailers to push back on manufacturers' direct-to-consumer models, as it gives consumers one less reason to enter the store, results in smaller basket sizes and greater pressure on wallet share. When a consumer product giant decides to bypass the retailers, eyebrows rise across the consumer business industry, with manufacturers thinking about new revenue possibilities while retailers worry that other product companies will follow.

Continue reading P&G Tinkers with Direct-to-Consumer Model

Emerging Markets and Electronics Retailers Sport Best Intangible Values

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.

Continue reading Emerging Markets and Electronics Retailers Sport Best Intangible Values

Seasonal Retail Hiring Up 42%

Despite some early concerns that the action would be slow, seasonal hiring spiked 42% for the retail sector in 2009.

Even though growth was modest -- and based on the depressed baseline set last year -- 547,400 holiday workers showed up at stores across the country to help handle the increased foot traffic and what eventually became a small gain in sales. A year earlier, holiday hiring fell to a 22-year low of 384,300, according to an analysis revealed to BloggingStocks by Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Continue reading Seasonal Retail Hiring Up 42%

Retailers Post Solid December, but Consumer Still Strapped

Retailers appear to have been rescued at the last minute, according to data from the International Council of Shopping Centers. Shoppers looking for deals the week before Christmas -- and making up for the day lost to stormy weather on the East Coast -- spent aggressively, sparing the retail sector a dismal 2008-like performance.

The healthy conclusion to the holiday season led to a positive change from November and made December one of only three months (including September and October) in which retail sales increased year-over-year.

Continue reading Retailers Post Solid December, but Consumer Still Strapped

December Layoffs Lowest in a Year

The job market looked grim at the beginning of 2009, but as we crossed into 2010, there seems to be a glimmer of hope. We still aren't seeing jobs added yet, but at least the cuts are headed in the right direction. Last month, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, announced layoffs fell 10% to 45,094. This is the lowest level seen since December 2007, exactly two years earlier, when there were only 44,416 job cuts. The most recent tally is also off 10% from November's 50,349, making it the fifth month in a row that layoffs have decreased. Since July, the stat has fallen 14% a month, on average.

Continue reading December Layoffs Lowest in a Year

Day After Christmas Tops All but Black Friday for Retailers

The second best shopping day of the holiday season didn't come until after the festivities ended. Dec. 26, 2009 wasn't good enough to top Black Friday, but data from ShopperTrak shows that it did shoot past the last Saturday before Christmas, which is usually among the top days of the holiday season. This year, that Saturday wasn't able to realize its potential because of a snowstorm that smacked the East Coast.

Store traffic fell 6.6% from 2008 for the day after Christmas, but sales still reached $7.9 billion. Analysts expected the the first post-holiday shopping day to assume more importance, largely because of the storm a week earlier

Continue reading Day After Christmas Tops All but Black Friday for Retailers

Retail Results to Come this Week, but Spring Is the Test

holiday shoppingThis week, the world's top retailers will tell investors how the much-discussed holiday season went. Analysts expect a year-over-year gain of 1.3% for stores open at least a year, which of course uses a dismal 2008 as a benchmark.

The holiday shopping season is the last chance retailers get to pump up their financial statements before the close of their fiscal year, which usually comes at the end of January. For some retailers, up to 40% of their revenue comes in the weeks heading into Christmas.

Continue reading Retail Results to Come this Week, but Spring Is the Test

Early Estimates for Retail Sales Favor Online

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.

Continue reading Early Estimates for Retail Sales Favor Online

After Christmas, Retailers Pick Up the Pieces

The holidays have ended, and the real sales have begun. Those choosing to sacrifice sentimentality for savings found retailers only too willing to help, as prices were slashed in the wake of the Christmas rush. Recipients of gift cards stand to see their purchasing power extended, as well, now that redemption time has arrived, and retailers are looking to squeeze in any extra sales they can to pump up their top lines before the books close on the fiscal year, which, for many, comes at the end of January.

Toys "R" Us has offered a deal on Nintendo (NTDOY) Wii games, with the second coming at half price, and Target (TGT) is nearly halving the price of wine glasses and dropping the tag on an argyle women's sweater by nearly a third. Walmart (WMT), which kicked off its cuts at the end of September, is throwing a $50 gift card on top of any Microsoft (MSFT) Xbox 360 buy.

Continue reading After Christmas, Retailers Pick Up the Pieces

Don't Put an Economic Recovery on Your Christmas List

For retailers, it doesn't get bigger than the holiday season, but even a raving success may not be enough to push an uneasy economy on the road to recovery. Basically, the retail sector has to do well to keep people from worrying more, but we'll all have to wait a while for some economic bliss. According to an MSNBC report, gift sales aren't as powerful as many believe.

So, here are five reasons why a great visit from Santa won't be enough to kick-start the economy:

Continue reading Don't Put an Economic Recovery on Your Christmas List

With Christmas Looming, Retailers Make Up for Lost Time

Anxious to grab every last dollar they can out of holiday shoppers, retailers are pulling out all the stops. Especially given the snowstorm on the East Coast last week, they have to make up some ground, and time is running out. They lost the Saturday before Christmas, one of the busiest shopping days of the year -- and a favorite of people like me who wait until the last minute.

"Super Saturday," as it's called, was off close to 13% compared to last year, says research firm ShopperTrak. Only $6.9 billion came in, off $1 billion-year-over-year. And, let's not forget that 2008 was a drag. Its $7.9 billion performance was down from $8.7 billion in 2007.

Continue reading With Christmas Looming, Retailers Make Up for Lost Time

Cyber Monday a success, despite Black Friday

The online push from Black Friday continued into Cyber Monday. Coremetrics, a web analytics company, found that sales were up 19.6% year-over-year as of 1:00 PM Monday. Online may account for only 10% of spending during the holiday season (7% overall), but it remains the bright spot in what has been a lackluster kickoff to the holiday season.

Black Friday spending was up only 0.5% this year, though Black Friday online spending jumped 35%. For Friday and Saturday, ShopperTrak reports that retail sales were up 0.9% to $16.77 billion, while customer traffic dropped 2.7%.

Continue reading Cyber Monday a success, despite Black Friday

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