Tuesday's Market Minute: Will Clothing Retailers Measure Up?

Gap Inc GPS, Nordstrom, Inc. JWN, and American Eagle Outfitters Inc AEO all report quarterly earnings after the bell today.

Urban Outfitters, Inc. URBN reported earnings after the close yesterday and beat estimates, which could be a positive forecast for the other names in its category. Baird analyst Mark Altschwager raised Urban’s price target to $35 from $33 and said he would aggressively buy any pullbacks since he was expecting a fashion recovery next year—if true, these retailers will need to be ready.

Despite increased competition from Target Corporation TGT and Walmart Inc’s WMT own clothing brands and stay-at-home orders, the consumer is still buying new clothing from specialty retailers.

Even though Gap, Nordstrom, and American Eagle all serve slightly different demographics, it will be useful to compare their results and see what overall strategy is working. Is brick and mortar coming back? Do the most successful companies have the best online experience? Or is the power of a name brand enough?

Photo by Korie Cull on Unsplash