Alexa web rank
Macy’s Inc., Ulta Beauty, Inc., Capri Holdings Ltd. and Costco Wholesale Corp

Macy’s Inc., Ulta Beauty, Inc., Capri Holdings Ltd. and Costco Wholesale Corp

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – January 18, 2022 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Macy’s Inc. M, Ulta Beauty, Inc. ULTA,Capri Holdings Ltd. CPRI and Costco Wholesale Corp. COST.

– Zacks

Here are highlights from Monday’s Analyst Blog:

4 Retail Stocks to Spruce Up Your Portfolio as Holiday Sales Soar

The holiday season, a crucial part of the year for retailers, turned out to be a blissful one as consumers filled their shopping carts. Even supply chain challenges, rising prices and the ongoing pandemic could not take away the sheen of the season. No doubt, retailers seemed to have addressed logistics and inventory issues well to meet the festive demand efficiently, be it offline or online.

Holiday Sales Remarkably Strong

Pent-up savings from stimulus payments and rising wages drove holiday retail sales. Eagerness among consumers to shop, be in-store or online, fueled demand across a diverse set of categories. Undeniably, supply-chain chaos and labor shortages did pinch retailers but they made every attempt to overcome the same.

A report by National Retail Federation (NRF) indicates that holiday retail sales, excluding automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants, increased 14.1{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} year over year to $886.7 billion. The number exceeded NRF’s latest holiday sales projection of an increase of as much as 11.5{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}. The reported figure comfortably outpaced 2020’s year-over-year growth rate of 8.2{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}.

Meanwhile, the retail trade group also informed that online and other non-store sales grew 11.3{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} to $218.9 billion during the festive season, defined as Nov 1 through Dec 31. The group had forecast an increase of 11-15{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} in online and other non-store sales for the period.

The report highlighted a year-over-year increase in sales for myriad categories. Markedly, robust performance across Clothing and clothing accessory stores, Sporting goods stores, General merchandise stores, Furniture and home furnishings stores, and Electronics and appliance stores contributed to holiday sales. We also note that sales at Building materials and garden supply stores, Health and personal care stores, and Grocery and beverage stores were strong.

NRF chief economist Jack Kleinhenz said, “Worries about inflation and COVID-19 put pressure on consumer attitudes but did not dampen spending, and sales were remarkably strong. Even though many consumers began shopping in October, this was the strongest November and December we’ve ever seen.”

No wonder, the holiday season, which accounts for a sizable chunk of yearly revenues, is a make or break for retailers. Evidently, retailers have been channelizing their strength and making strategic investments to provide consumers fast, convenient and safe shopping experience.

That said, we have highlighted four stocks from the Retail – Wholesale sector that look well-positioned based on their sound fundamentals and earnings growth prospects. These stocks have either a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

4 Prominent Picks

Macy’s, Inc., one of the nation’s premier omnichannel retailers, is a potential pick. The company has been benefiting from efforts undertaken as part of the Polaris Strategy, including boosting assortments, strengthening customer relations, accelerating digital growth, optimizing store portfolio and reducing costs. The company has been witnessing sturdy growth across all three brands namely, Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury. Management is on track to strengthen omni-channel capabilities with investments toward online shopping experiences.

Macy’s has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 313.5{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}, on average. This Zacks Rank #1 company has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 12{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Macy’s current financial year sales and EPS suggests growth of 39.6{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} and 320.4{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}, respectively, from the year-ago period.

You may invest in Ulta Beauty, Inc. The company has been strengthening its omni-channel business and exploring the potential of both physical and digital facets. It has been implementing various tools to enhance guests’ experience, like offering a virtual try-on tool and in-store education, and reimagining fixtures, among others. Ulta Beauty focuses on offering customers a curated and exclusive range of beauty products through innovation.

Impressively, this beauty retailer and the premier beauty destination for cosmetics, fragrance, skincare products, hair care products and salon services has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 76{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}, on average. We note that this Zacks Rank #1 company has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 16.5{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ulta Beauty’s current financial year sales and EPS suggests growth of 39.8{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} and 268{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}, respectively, from the year-ago period.

We also suggest betting on Capri Holdings Ltd. The company has been reinforcing its position in the luxury fashion space and looks to maximize the potential of Versace, Jimmy Choo and Michael Kors brands through expanded products and categories. It has been investing significantly in digital analytics and upgrading the e-commerce platform.

Capri Holdings’ bottom line has outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a wide margin in the trailing four quarters. This Zacks Rank #2 company has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 32.2{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Capri Holdings’ current financial year sales and EPS suggests growth of 33.2{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} and 181.1{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}, respectively, from the year-ago period.

You may bet on Costco Wholesale Corp. The company’s growth strategies, better price management, decent membership trends and increasing penetration of e-commerce business have been contributing to its performance. Cumulatively, these factors have been aiding this operator of membership warehouses in registering an impressive comparable sales run. Costco has been rapidly adopting the omni-channel mantra to provide a seamless shopping experience, whether online or in stores.

Costco has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 8.3{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}, on average. This Zacks Rank #2 company has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 8.8{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Costco’s current financial year sales and EPS suggests growth of 10.9{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} and 14{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}, respectively, from the year-ago period.

Infrastructure Stock Boom to Sweep America

A massive push to rebuild the crumbling U.S. infrastructure will soon be underway. It’s bipartisan, urgent, and inevitable. Trillions will be spent. Fortunes will be made.

The only question is “Will you get into the right stocks early when their growth potential is greatest?”

Zacks has released a Special Report to help you do just that, and today it’s free. Discover 7 special companies that look to gain the most from construction and repair to roads, bridges, and buildings, plus cargo hauling and energy transformation on an almost unimaginable scale.

Download FREE: How to Profit from Trillions on Spending for Infrastructure >>

Media Contact

Zacks Investment Research

800-767-3771 ext. 9339

[email protected]                                      

https://www.zacks.com                                                   

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

Just Released: Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2022

In addition to the investment ideas discussed above, would you like to know about our 10 top picks for the entirety of 2022?

From inception in 2012 through 2021, the Zacks Top 10 Stocks portfolios gained an impressive +1,001.2{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5} versus the S&P 500’s +348.7{adb1ce361e4d115852a5ecc77da1fcd21e68b5d23904b1abbfd33825d7fe0fb5}. Now our Director of Research has combed through 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank and has handpicked the best 10 tickers to buy and hold. Don’t miss your chance to get in…because the sooner you do, the more upside you stand to grab.

See Stocks Now >>

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
Macy’s, Inc. (M): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Ulta Beauty Inc. (ULTA): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Capri Holdings Limited (CPRI): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
 
Zacks Investment Research

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/413675