Peter Benedict

Retail industry bellwether Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE: WMT) will report its fourth-quarter results on February 21 amid a slew of disappointing holiday sales updates from its peers. Cautious retail investors would look at how far the choppy industrial backdrop has impacted the world's largest...

Baird expects the fundamentals of GNC Holdings Inc (NYSE: GNC) to remain pressure as the vitamins and sports nutrition products reports its fourth quarter results on February 16. Analyst Peter Benedict, who has a Neutral rating on shares, anticipates EPS of $0.34, below consensus estimate of $0.36...

Baird reiterated its Outperform rating on Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ: COST) ahead of the membership warehouse operator’s November sales results due out Wednesday. The brokerage, which has a price target of $175 on the Costco shares, expects global core comps of 2 percent (similar to...

Baird analysts maintain their Outperform rating on Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ: COST) as it expects better traffic and sales in the coming months following better-than-expected September comps. The brokerage's optimistic call comes despite headwinds from tobacco and the expected...

Baird Equity Research maintains an Outperform rating with a price target of $175 for Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ: COST) on Friday and trimmed its fourth-quarter EPS estimate from $1.73 to $1.69. “While the retail backdrop seems to have slowed,” explained Baird senior analyst...

Baird remains bullish on Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW), as the recent drop in shares creates an attractive entry point for investors despite potential headwinds from seasonal variability and rate fears. Shares of Lowe's fell 8 percent in the last one month versus the S&P 500's 1.5 percent...

Baird has maintained its Outperform rating and $80 target price on Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) as it is encouraged by early signs of progress, thus adding to the defensive appeal of shares amid the tough retail environment. "[I]nvestments in employees/wages, customer service, merchandising,...

Analysts, in general, are optimistic on Dicks Sporting Goods Inc (NYSE: DKS), despite the warm weather that led the company's quarterly results to miss the Street's view. However, the shares closed 2.46 percent higher, implying investors were expecting such a result and are looking into the future...