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Takeaways
- TJX Cos. shares and Ross Stores’ stock prices held up better Thursday than those of some retail competitors in the wake of Trump’s latest tariff news.
- Citi analysts upgraded both retailers to a "buy" rating following the tariff news.
- Analysts say that as prices rise, consumers will be looking for bargains.
Two discount retail shares avoided the steeper drops seen by other big retailers following the Trump administration’s recent tariffs.
TJX Cos.’s (TJX) stock edged up in recent trading on Thursday. Ross Stores (ROST), although it was a little lower, was still a lot less than the declines of Target (TGT), Best Buy(BBY), or Five Below (FIVE), which were all down more than 10%.
Citi analysts upgraded Ross and TJX, parent company of T.J. Maxx and HomeGoods, to "buy" ratings on Thursday. They lifted their price target on the latter stock to $140, in line with the Street's consensus according to Visible Alpha, from $128, saying the retailer is "as well positioned as ever."
"Tariffs are likely to create significant disruption in the [market], greatly increasing the availability of product available to off-pricers at attractive prices," the analysts wrote. "At the same time, a potentially weakening consumer environment will mean more consumers are likely to trade down to the off-price channel in search of value."
Analysts at UBS and Oppenheimer also released notes on Thursday about the retail industry. They said that giants such as Walmart (WMT), and Costco (COST), are likely to weather this tariff storm.
For more coverage of the market’s reaction to the latest tariff news, check out Investopedia’s daily live blog.
