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Holiday Season to Power Retail Sales: 5 Stocks With Growth Potential

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The retail sector is making a steady rebound, with sales growing over the past couple of months. The upcoming holiday season is expected to help retailers further, with sales projected to grow at a solid pace this year.

Given the positive outlook, investing in retail stocks like Burlington Stores, Inc. (BURL - Free Report) , Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST - Free Report) , Chewy, Inc. (CHWY - Free Report) , Target Corporation (TGT - Free Report) andLands' End, Inc. (LE - Free Report) would be a wise decision ahead of the holiday season. These stocks have seen positive earnings estimate revisions in the last 60 days. Each of the stocks has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Holiday Season to Boost Retail Sales

The countdown to the holiday season has begun, with retail sales projected to rise 3.5% year over year in 2024, according to the National Retail Federation (NRA). Sales will likely grow at the slowest pace in six years but are estimated to rise between $979.5 billion and $989 billion, helping retailers that have struggled almost throughout the year.

Holiday sales grew 3.9% to $955.6 billion last year. Retailers are projected to hire between 40,000 and 50,000 seasonal workers this holiday season. Online and other non-store sales are expected to jump 9% to $297.9 billion, higher than the $273.3 billion recorded in 2023.

A separate forecast from Adobe Analytics shows online sales jumping 8.4% from the year-ago levels, hitting $240.8 billion this holiday season. Online holiday sales totaled $221.8 billion in 2023, increasing 4.9% annually. Shopping on mobile devices is expected to hit a new record high of $128.1 billion, rising 12.8% year over year.

Retail Sector Staging a Comeback

The Commerce Department said that retail sales grew 0.4% in September after rising 0.1% in August, surpassing the consensus estimate of a rise of 0.3%. Excluding autos, retail sales jumped 0.5%, surpassing analysts’ expectations of an increase of 0.1%.

The retail sector, which struggled last year and for most of 2024, has been trying to regain its lost ground. Price pressures owing to the Federal Reserve’s aggressive monetary tightening campaign to combat inflation saw interest rates hitting a 23-year high.

However, cooling inflation over the past few months saw the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 50 basis points in September. Market participants are now expecting at least two more 25 basis point interest rate cuts this year. Lower borrowing rates are expected to give consumers more purchasing power, which will eventually boost retail sales.

5 Retail Stocks With Upside

Burlington Stores, Inc.

Burlington Stores, Inc. functions as a retailer of branded apparel products and is a Fortune 500 company. BURL operates in the United States and Puerto Rico. Burlington Stores offers products such as ladies sportswear, menswear, youth apparel, baby furniture, accessories, home décor and gifts, and coats.

Burlington Stores’ expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 30.5%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings improved 2.7% over the past 60 days. BURL presently has a Zacks Rank #2.

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Costco Wholesale Corporation

Costco Wholesale Corporation sells high volumes of food and general merchandise (including household products and appliances) at discounted prices through membership warehouses. Costco is one of the largest warehouse club operators in the United States. COST also operates e-commerce websites in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Australia.

Costco Wholesale Corporation’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 10.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings improved 0.7% over the past 60 days. COST has a Zacks Rank #2.

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Chewy, Inc.

Chewy, Inc. operates as an online pet retailer. CHWY offers pet products such as dry and wet food, toys, mats, biscuits, vitamins and supplements. 

CHWY’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 65.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved 17.5% over the past 60 days. CHWY currently sports a Zacks Rank #1.

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Target Corporation

Target Corporation has evolved from being a pure brick & mortar retailer to an omni-channel entity. TGT has been investing in technologies, improving websites and mobile apps, and modernizing the supply chain to keep pace with the changing retail landscape and better compete with pure e-commerce players.

Target Corporation’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 6.6%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved 0.4% over the past 60 days. Target currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

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Lands' End, Inc.

Lands' End, Inc. operates as a multi-channel retailer. LE offers men's, women's, and kids' apparel, outerwear and swimwear; specialty apparel; accessories; footwear; and home products. Lands' Endoperates in two segments: Direct and Retail. It offers products through catalogs, online at www.landsend.com and affiliated specialty and international Websites, and through retail locations.

Lands' End’s expected earnings growth rate for the current year is more than 100%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings has improved 23.3% over the past 60 days. LE currently carries a Zacks Rank #1.

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