Gap (GPS)

The U.S. reopening trade People will buy business casual again and this will be a huge driver in the apparel space. So, Gap or even Macy's fits the bill. However, to play the US reopening, buy energy stocks.

Part of the "lag trade" of brick-and-mortar mall retailers that sold off this summer, but are coming back with room to run. Their Athleta line competes with Lululemon. People are buying comfortable clothing, now that they work from home (as opposed to business wear). In August's report, Athleta sales were up 19% while Old Navy was up 24%. Brick and mortar took a hit in half, but digital sales which nearly doubled. Banana Republic was the weakest segment though. Store closures are good for the bottom line (bad for workers). The Gap is hiring (not firing) 50,000 seasonal people to shore up its holiday digital sales. Gap trades at a 18x PE, reasonable.

The problem with this company and all these clothing stores is that it is very difficult to compete. Space is expensive. The ones that do well are the ones that go online. They are fighting a very difficult secular trend that is happening in the industry.

He doesn't see the Gap different from other garment retailers; it's not special. He owns Lululemon instead, who have enjoyed strong growth. Go for growth. Gap is a laggard. TJX is interesting.

This is a cheap retail stock. Has a pretty good franchise, but like a lot of brick-and-mortar retail, their numbers have stagnated. This is probably one of the longer-term survivors, but the general sector still seems to be under pressure.

A beaten up retail stock where they have to reduce footprint and increase online sales. Long term they have had these ups and down. If GPS-N is cheap it is usually a good place to get in.

*Short* Had a good run last quarter, and is up quite substantially, but is up substantially on not a lot of news, and with not anything particularly encouraging. Margins have dropped from 2014, where they were roughly 17%, and are now trending around 10%. Margins are contracting and they are struggling with e-commerce. The bright spot has been Old Navy which has done relatively well. This industry is very fickle in terms of fashion and getting that brand layup. Dividend yield of 3.61%. (Analysts’ price target is $26.20.)

Like many other retailers, it has suffered a bloodbath over the last year, and is down about 8%-10% this year. They haven’t been able to move the merchandise, and in this business if you are not moving the merchandise, you have to start discounting, which eats into the margins. He doesn’t see a real catalyst for growth in the future.

It is down 50%. Getting involved in fashion retailing is hard. Retail is brutal. Same store sales are declining in all brands. It is such a risky place to be.

Ralph Lauren (RL-N) or Gap (GPS-N)? Both of these are very reliant on the US consumer. This one generates about 80% of its revenues from the US while Ralph Lauren is 70%. Comparing these he would probably favour this one, primarily because they reach a wider scale of consumer. They have Old Navy at one end, the more economical play, Gap in the middle and Banana Republic for the luxury end. He doesn’t see anything wrong with either of these companies, but would probably look at a name like Nordstrom (JWN-N) instead, which gives you 500 brands.