Top 4 Retail Earnings for the Week Ahead

By Chris Lange Published Aug 9, 9:25AM EDT

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24/7 Wall St. has put together a preview of some of the major retailers that will reporting their quarterly earnings in the coming week. We are just entering into earnings season in which most major retailers will report and set a direction for the market. We have included the consensus earnings estimates from Thomson Reuters and the stock price and trading history, as well as added some additional color on each.

Be advised that the earnings and revenue estimates may change ahead of the formal reports, and some companies may change reporting dates as well.

Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) will share its most recent quarterly results on Wednesday. The consensus estimates call for earnings per share (EPS) of $0.77 and $6.24 billion in revenue. It may not be a traditional analyst upgrade, but one firm at least has real money behind its bet that Macy’s could be worth as much as close to a double from current prices. The activist investor fund Starboard came out with a projection that Macy’s could be worth almost double its current price. Of course, it involves some key asset sales that might leave the company with less of a future, but many activists care about the now and the next year rather than the next decade.

Shares were changing hands at $66.90 at the close on Friday, in a 52-week trading range of $54.84 to $73.61. The stock has a consensus analyst price target of $69.28.

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Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS) is scheduled to reveal its fiscal second-quarter results on Thursday. The consensus estimates call for $1.17 in EPS, as well as $4.32 billion in revenue. The company suffered a downgrade from Sterne Agee CRT after its last earnings report that took its rating down to Neutral from Buy. The analyst’s argument was that there is clearly a more challenged retail and consumer backdrop, and the path for same-store sales growth for 2015 and 2016 is less visible for Kohl’s. However, this earnings point could be a great time for the company to combat this call.

Shares ended last week at $60.02. The consensus price target is $73.00. The stock has a 52-week trading range of $53.86 to $79.60.

Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) is set to report its fiscal second-quarter results on Thursday. The analysts’ consensus estimates call for EPS of $0.90 and $3.67 billion in revenue. Ahead of the earnings report, analysts have had mixed calls on the company. For example, Piper Jaffray has a Buy rating with an $86 price target, while Brean only has a Hold rating. Following the most recent earnings report, Cowen actually had a Sell rating. After this quarter, we can look for some clarity from analysts.

Shares were trading at $74.91 on Friday’s close. The consensus price target is $76.86, and the stock has a 52-week trading range of $64.92 to $83.16.

J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) is expected to report its fiscal second-quarter results on Friday. The consensus analyst estimates call for a net loss of $0.48 per share on revenue of $2.86 billion. The company’s management has spent the past several quarters promoting a recovery, but has this really occurred? The reason the stock continues to be depressed is that a recovery has been no recovery at all. In the previous quarter, which ended May 2, revenue rose only 2% to $2.86 billion. J.C. Penney lost $167 million. History shows how far J.C. Penney has to go. Revenue was over $17 billion in both the 2011 and 2012 fiscal years. The number dropped to $13 billion in 2013 and $11.9 billion in 2014.

Shares closed at $8.24 on Friday. The consensus price target is $8.86. The 52-week trading range is $5.90 to $11.30.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.