Why Express (EXPR) Is the Best Retail Stock Right Now

Zacks

After a slightly shaky start to the year, the U.S. economy is picking up momentum. With the fall in unemployment rate, rising wages and decent consumer confidence, the economy looks quite strong despite the rising pressure elsewhere.

The improving economy coupled with cheap oil and gas is boosting Americans’ spending power.

Given the rebound in the country’s economy, the retail space is attracting investors’ attention. However, declining mall traffic and downward pressure on margins remain the concerns for several retailers. Hence, it is important to pick the growth stocks carefully from this sector.

This is where our VGM score comes in. Here “V” stands for Value, “G” for Growth and “M” for Momentum and the score is the weighted combination of these three scores. Such a score allows you to eliminate the negative aspects of stocks and select winners. However, it is important to keep in mind that each Style Score will carry a different weight while arriving at a VGM score.

Growth stocks yield big gains and provide the required cushion for your portfolio.

One such stock with a VGM Score of A is Express Inc. EXPR. Express Inc fares well in the new style score system with a Value, Growth and Momentum score of ‘A’ for all.

Solid Fundamentals and Business Momentum

This Retail-Apparel/Shoe industry player witnessed a massive EPS growth of 70.3% in fiscal 2015, and is looking great for this year too.

In fact, growth estimate for the current year translates into EPS growth of 16.6%. Furthermore, the long-term growth rate is currently an impressive 15.0%.

The company reported solid fourth-quarter results with earnings surging 37% year over year backed by 5% growth in revenues. Strong e-Commerce sales and higher comps led to the upbeat results.

Further, the company has expanded its product assortment to include more fashion items and collections like Express Editions, Express Core and One Eleven. Further, it ramped up the marketing efforts and made the promotional message more brand oriented and catchy. These initiatives are expected to boost the top line in fiscal 2016 further.

Moreover, Express’ estimates for the current fiscal year rose about 5.6% over the last 30 days. The Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) further underscores the stock’s potential to outperform.

So if you are looking for a fast growing stock that is still has a lot of upside left, make sure to consider Express Inc.

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