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3 Sportswear Retail Stocks to Buy Right Now

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Welcome to the latest episode of the Full-Court Finance podcast from Zacks Investment Research where Associate Stock Strategist Ben Rains breaks down three of the best sportswear-focused stocks to consider buying right now.

Today we began by taking a look at Foot Locker (FL - Free Report) , which is due to report its fourth quarter and full-year financial results on Friday, March 1. The sneaker retailer is currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) that has seen its stock price soar over 90% since November 2017. Foot Locker, like Dick’s Sporting Good (DKS - Free Report) , has faced challenges as brands like Adidas (ADDYY - Free Report) push more heavily toward their own direct-to-consumer businesses in the Amazon (AMZN - Free Report) age.

To help expand, Foot Locker announced in early February a $100 million minority investment in the GOAT Group, which owns GOAT and Flight Club brands. The deal will see the companies  “combine efforts across digital and physical retail platforms to create exclusive customer experiences,” according to a statement. 

The move helps show just how quickly the broader secondary shoe market has grown in the larger athleisure age. GOAT functions somewhat like an eBay (EBAY - Free Report) for expensive sneakers. Foot Locker’s investment also follows Farfetch’s FTCH $250 million acquisition of sneaker seller Stadium Goods.

Another company to keep an eye on is Nike (NKE - Free Report) . The sportswear giant is coming off a strong fiscal Q2 that saw its revenues jump 10%. Plus, the company’s North American growth continued and its digital revenues surged 41%, with mobile accounting for over 50% of its digital sales. This was driven by Nike’s new apps and helps show how important its presence is across Instagram and Twitter have become.

Nike has been able to expand its position in the sports world, fashion, and athleisure—along with Lululemon (LULU - Free Report) and some of Gap’s (GPS - Free Report) brands. Nike, which seems to stand in contrast to Under Armour’s (UAA - Free Report) inability to return to growth in its home market, rests right near its 52-week and all-time high of $86.04 a share.

The episode closed with Canada Goose GOOS after its stock price plummeted, despite posting better-than-projected quarterly financial results. The Toronto-based company’s direct-to-consumer revenue soared nearly 80% in the vital holiday quarter, yet its stock price now sits well below its 52-week high.

Looking ahead, Canada Goose, which sells parkas that cost as much as $1,500 and $395 sweaters, expects to expand its retail footprint beyond its 11 flagship stores and at department stores like Nordstrom (JWN - Free Report) .

As a reminder, if you feel that we missed something, or if you have any topic suggestions, shoot us an email at podcast@zacks.com. Make sure to check out all of our other audio content at zacks.com/podcasts, and remember to subscribe and leave us a rating wherever you listen to your podcasts.

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