Novice Investing - November Goes, December Comes

Date: Thursday 20th 2008f November 2008 04:43:24 PM

November Goes, December Comes - 12/1/2005

By: Novice Investing Staff

Month comes and goes. Today is the beginning of the month and it is time for retailers to report their sales number for November. Thanksgiving which falls on the last week on November is the beginning of a busy holiday season for retailers. Therefore, November reports will set the tone for the rest of the holiday season which may account to as much as 40 % annual sales. Here are several retailers reporting their November sales.

Walmart Stores Inc. (WMT). The company which was burnt this time last year, reported a 4.3 % same store sales. It lured shoppers with bargains to start the holiday season. Looking ahead, though, the company expects December same store sales to be in the modest 2 - 4 % range. Perhaps, they are trying to be conservative. Or perhaps, they are so darn big that it is getting real difficult to squeeze 2 % gain out of billion of dollar of sales.

Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST). The pioneer of warehouse retailing reported a strong 6% same store sales gain. This is a tad below analyst's estimates. The company blames the strengthening US dollars that makes international revenue looks smaller. In the era of budget deficit, who might have thought that the greenback finally gain some of its luster?

Sharper Image Corp. (SHRP). The company that has been struggling for months reported an 18 % dip in same store sales. Whatever the estimate is, an 18 % decrease in sales does not suggest a turnaround. If the trend continues for holiday season, Sharper Image will report a steeper loss that might jeopardize its clean balance sheet.

Pier One Imports Inc. (PIR) Warren Buffet owned a minority stake on this company. Same store sales for November rose 1.9 percent, a good start for the holiday season. A few days ago, we noticed that web traffic for Pier One has increased 50 % compared to the previous month. This is a good indication going forward, which is what Pier One reported. Same store sales had been declining for more than a year

before November result. Management also indicated that they spend more heavily on promotion, which was what we suspected a few days ago on the same article.

Nordstrom Inc. (JWN). Nordstrom missed analyst estimate for its November same store sales number. It reports a 2.8 % increase for November same store sales as opposed to analyst expectation calling for a 4.6% increase.

JC. Penney Co & Inc. (JCP). Penney reported a 3.6 % increase in November same store sales, beating analyst's estimate of 1.9 percent. The stock which traded at $ 10 on 2001, is now traded at $ 54.

END

For preliminary research, you can browse our collection of annual reports here

You can also view other helpful commentary by clicking here

Disclaimer: The sole purpose of this article is educational. This article is merely the opinion of the writer and is not in any way a buy/sell recommendation regarding Sharper Image Corp. (SHRP) or any other securities.

[Resources] [Forum] [Link Partner ] [Novice Investing Directory ] [ Submit Your Article Here ]