The subtle deterioration of fundamentals continues unabated and the number of companies considered “materially weaker” outnumber the “materially stronger” entries again this week. This means that the long-term forecasts continue to show more downside pressure.
This week includes the shopping (retail) stocks and the sale opportunities continue to be fairly thin and far between.
Companies of Interest
Materially Stronger: Zale (ZLC), GameStop (GME)
Materially Weaker: Body Central (BODY), Coach (COH) 1, Ascena (ASNA), Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY), Wal-Mart (WMT) 2, American Eagle (AEO), Nordstrom (JWN), Penney J.C. (JCP), Aeropostale (ARO)
1 Coach (COH) 3-5 year low price forecast reduced from $75 to $65.
2 Wal-Mart reduced from $100 to $95. (FYI)
Market Barometers
The median Value Line low total return forecast (VLLTR) is 4.0%, up slightly from last week’s 3.9%.
Expecting Alpha 