Black Friday 2017: Here Are The Retailers Who Showed Holiday Promise

Black Friday appears to have been a successful selling event for retailers, as traffic levels remained solid while ShopperTrak reported a less than 1 percent decrease in foot traffic in stores.

The Analyst

KeyBanc Capital Markets' Bradley Thomas, Jason Gere, Brett Andress, Edward Yruma and others.

The Thesis

Online commerce remains a "key avenue for growth" for retailers but foot traffic levels were "broadly solid" across multiple store check throughout Black Friday. Here is a summary of how some of the most notable physical and digital retailers performed during the selling event.

Hardlines

• Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. BBBY was slightly more aggressive in promotions but overall "uninspiring" with undifferentiated promotions versus its peers.
• Best Buy Co Inc BBY gained market share and saw healthy traffic. The company's credit turnaround is also gaining momentum.
• Conn's Inc CONN likely benefited from the impact of Hurricane Harvey in impacted markets which represents around 20 percent of total sales.

Toys

• Mattel, Inc. MAT and Hasbro, Inc. HAS: overall both companies performed "OK" but it's too early to draw conclusions. However, smaller and mostly private toy companies likely overshadowed Mattel and Hasbro throughout the weekend.

Relatad Link: With Consumer Confidence Up, Retailers Hope For Blissful Holidays

Softlines and eCommerce

• Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN continued to focus on fashion and devices, including $20 to $50 off Amazon devices and 30 to 50 percent off Prime-exclusive deals on clothing.
• Gap Inc GPS's Black Friday promotions were similar to last year (50 percent off the entire store) but was increased slightly to an extra 10 percent off online purchases ahead of Cyber Monday.
• Wal-Mart Stores Inc WMT offered the same promotion as last year where deals across many product categories were available online at 12:01 a.m. Thanksgiving morning and in stores as of 6:00 p.m.
• G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. GIII benefited from strong sales of cold weather goods and the company could have been an outsized winner.

Household and Personal Care

• Ulta Beauty Inc ULTA saw "good" store traffic on Thanksgiving evening and Black Friday with lots of new membership signups for its loyalty program.
• Estee Lauder Companies Inc EL: Specialty beauty companies offered lots of compelling gift sets and saw busy foot traffic.
• Newell Brands Inc NWL was incrementally promotional which could boost sales but at the expense of margins.
• Helen of Troy Limited HELE heavily promoted its water bottles which could similarly weigh on margins.