Jefferies On The Big Boys Of Retail

Retailer stocks are typically hit pretty hard during the sluggish summer investing months, and the Q1 numbers out of department stores were lackluster at best.

“The widespread April sales deceleration (including a beacon of consistency like COST (Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ: COST)), whose 2 percent April US comp is lookin’ pretty decent at this point) has left many wondering how much of the slowdown is the uncertainty of the election combined with choppy weather or a more nefarious cyclical slowdown,” JPMorgan analyst Christopher Horvers wrote.

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Horvers recently took a look at the “big boys” of retail to determine if traders should be jumping ship or buying the dip ahead of the summer months. Here’s a summary of JPMorgan’s outlook for popular retail stocks.

The firm believes home improvement stocks are firing on all cylinders and maintains Overweight ratings on both Home Depot Inc (NYSE: HD) and Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW).

JPMorgan is equally bullish on specialized Overweight-rated retailers Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE: AAP) and Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. (NASDAQ: ULTA).

Horvers is much more cautious on mega retailers Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) and Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT), each of which is feeling the heat from the world of e-commerce. JPMorgan maintains Neutral ratings on both stocks.

Disclosure: The author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.