The first half of 2019 was gruesome for traditional retailers. And if the first few days of July are any indication, the second half of 2019 won’t be any rosier.
Four of the S&P 500 index’s five worst performing stocks in the first half of 2019 are retail companies, according to the Wall Street Journal. For the first few days of the second half of the year, those stocks have continued to drop.
These indicators come as other legacy retail companies have shuttered thousands of stores across the country as the rise of e-commerce and online retailers have turned the industry on its head.
On Tuesday, Nordstrom lost 1.7 percent off its stock price after its rating was downgraded by UBS. At the end of June, it was listed as S&P 500’s worst performing stock.
It capped off downward pressure on other major retailers, including Macy’s, Kohl’s and Gap, which reportedly declined in the first half of the year by 1.6 percent, 1.5 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively.
Last week, reports emerged that executives at Forever 21, which has experienced a decline in performance, had approached its landlords to invest in the troubled company.
However, some retailers are defying industry trends. TJX Companies, the owner of T.J. Maxx, Marshall’s and Home Goods, has recorded an 18 percent share price hike for the year, a factor reportedly driven by resiliency in the discount store market. [WSJ] — David Jeans