More and More Retailers Filed for Bankruptcy in 2017

This past week, retail bankruptcies hit a six-year high. The total was 50 for the 2017 full year, as of December 14. This number comes in above 47 total companies set in 2016 and approaches 59 set in 2011.

Some notable companies that filed for bankruptcy protection in 2017 were Toys “R” Us, True Religion Apparel, Payless ShoeSource and BCBG Max Azria, just to name a few. The most recent company to join the ranks was Charming Charlie, which was the second most recent to file for bankruptcy, on December 11.

Currently the most vulnerable U.S. public companies include Sun Pacific, Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD), Razer, Vince Holding Corp. (NYSE: VNCE) and Bon-Ton Stores Inc. (NYSE: BONT),

According to S&P Global:

The probability of default among these companies ranged from 44.38% and 5.36% with a corresponding implied credit score of ‘cc’ to ‘b’.

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While more companies are filing for bankruptcy this year than in years past, some companies are actually moving off the vulnerable list. L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LB) is one of those that made it off the naughty list this December.

So far this year, the S&P 500 is up roughly 20%, while the retail segment is up only 2% in 2017.

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