Top 5 Retail Stocks To Buy Right Now

Used-auto behemoth CarMax (NYSE: KMX  ) released earnings this week that came in above expectations and sent the stock to a new 52-week high. Given the high average auto-age in the United States, coupled with continued macroeconomic trepidation, used-car sales appear to have a strong future. Yet, at 19 times forward earnings, the company known for its no-nonsense auto pricing has a stock price that looks mighty rich. Here's what you need to know about CarMax going forward.

Recap
This past week, CarMax released its fourth-quarter and year-end results. From the look of things, 2012 was marked by more vehicle sales and higher average selling prices. Retail used-vehicle sales boosted up more than 10% for the year to 447,000 cars -- aiding a record revenue figure of nearly $11 billion. By the company's own estimates, CarMax represents 6% of the used-vehicle market with cars aged zero to six years. For the year, net earnings rose 5% to $434 million.

Part of this year-over-year growth is attributed to the 10 new stores opened throughout the year -- the most since 2008. As part of this growth, SG&A costs rose more than 10% to $1 billion. Marketing campaigns are incredibly important for the company to stay competitive with peers such as AutoNation (NYSE: AN  ) , but investors need to keep an eye on these SG&A increases to make sure they are yielding an appropriate return on the sales front.

5 Best Promising Stocks For 2015: AutoZone Inc.(AZO)

AutoZone, Inc. retails and distributes automotive replacement parts and accessories. The company?s stores offer various products for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans, and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products. Its automotive hard parts product line includes A/C compressors, batteries and accessories, belts and hoses, carburetors, chassis, clutches, CV axles, engines, fuel pumps, fuses, ignition, lighting, mufflers, starters and alternators, water pumps, radiators, and thermostats. The company?s maintenance items include antifreeze and windshield washer fluid; brake drums, rotors, shoes, and pads; chemicals, including brake and power; steering fluid, oil, and fuel additives; oil and transmission fluids; oil, air, fuel, and transmission filters; oxygen sensors; paint and accessories; refrigerant and accessories; shock absorbers and struts; spark plugs and wires; and windshield wiper s. Its discretionary product line comprises air fresheners, cell phone accessories, drinks and snacks, floor mats and seat covers, mirrors, performance products, protectants and cleaners, sealants and adhesives, steering wheel covers, stereos and radios, tools, and wash and wax products. The company also offers commercial sales program that provides the delivery of parts and other products to local, regional, and national repair garages, dealers, service stations, and public sector accounts. In addition, it sells the ALLDATA brand automotive diagnostic and repair software through the Website, alldata.com; and automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products through the Website, autozone.com. As of May 7, 2011, the company operated 4,467 stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, and 261 stores in Mexico. AutoZone, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is based in Memphis, Tennessee.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonas Elmerraji]

  Car parts retailer AutoZone (AZO) has been riding some big secular tailwinds for the last few years. As I write, the average passenger vehicle on the road in the U.S. today is 11.4 years old, the oldest average fleet age since automotive data firm Polk began collecting stats. With older cars on the road, costs to keep those cars running are climbing too – and that's helping to drive sales at AutoZone.

  AutoZone owns close to 4,700 stores across the U.S., and the firm has been expanding its reach into Latin America in recent years, with another 300 locations in Mexico and four Brazilian locations. It's not just do-it-yourselfers that frequent AutoZone's stores; the firm has more than 3,000 commercial counters inside its retail stores, providing parts for repair shops and service stations. That double-pronged approach means that AZO is able to book part sales for smaller DIY jobs alongside repair jobs that need to be done at a shop.

  The decision to expand into Mexico provides some big growth opportunities at AZO, as does its much smaller position in Brazil. Both of those markets have large vehicle fleets that are older on average than those in the U.S., so as AZO's ex-U.S. business scales up, it should begin to materially contribute to the larger firm.

  Right now, investors hate this stock. AZO's short interest ratio comes in at 12.16.

  Read More: 3 Big-Volume Stocks to Trade for Breakouts

• [By ovenerio]

  The company has a current ROE of 14.85% which is higher than the industry median. In general, analysts consider ROE ratios in the 15-20% range as representing attractive levels for investment. So for investors looking those levels or more, AutoNation (AN), CST Brands (CST), Lithia Motors (LAD) and AutoZone (AZO) could be the options. It is very important to understand this metric before investing and it is important to look at the trend in ROE over time.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Heading into last night’s earnings report, O’Reilly had returned 50% this year including reinvested dividends, easily besting peers Autozone (AZO), which had returned 22%, Genuine Parts (GPC), which has returned 26%, and Advance Auto Parts (AAP), which had returned 38%,� thanks in large part to a 25% gain in the last month due to its purchase of General Parts International. Clearly, investors thought O’Reilly had something going for it its competitors did not.

Top 5 Retail Stocks To Buy Right Now: Ross Stores Inc.(ROST)

Ross Stores, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates off-price retail apparel and home accessories stores under the Ross Dress for Less and dd?s DISCOUNTS brand names in the United States. Its Ross Dress for Less brand stores sell brand and designer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions for the entire family at everyday savings of 20 to 60 percent off department and specialty store regular prices; and dd?s DISCOUNTS brand stores sell apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions for the entire family at everyday savings of 20 to 70 percent off moderate department and discount store regular prices. As of January 29, 2011, the company operated 1,055 stores, of which 988 were Ross Dress for Less brand stores in 27 states and Guam, and 67 were dd?s DISCOUNTS brand stores in 6 states. Its Ross Dress for Less brand stores primarily target middle income households and dd?s DISCOUNTS brand stores target moderate income households. Ross Stores, Inc. was found ed in 1957 and is headquartered in Pleasanton, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Yesterday, small cap online discount retailer Overstock.com, Inc (NASDAQ: OSTK) went on�sale by 22.28% after announcing a disappointing earnings report which seemed to lack much management commentary, meaning it might be time to see whether its worth buying the stock given the new discount plus take a look at its performance verses that of other discount retailers like small cap Big Lots, Inc (NYSE: BIG), large cap Ross Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: ROST) and the big kahuna of online retail, Amazon.com, Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN).

• [By GuruFocus]

  According to GuruFocus list of 52-week lows, these Guru stocks have reached their 52-week lows.Deutsche Bank AG (DB) Reached the 52-Week Low of $36.04The prices of Deutsche Bank AG (DB) shares have declined to close to the 52-week low of $36.04, which is 36.1% off the 52-week high of $54.49. Deutsche Bank AG is owned by 3 Gurus we are tracking. Among them, 2 have added to their positions during the past quarter. 1 reduced their position.Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft is a stock corporation organized under the laws of Germany. Deutsche Bank Ag has a market cap of $36.74 billion; its shares were traded at around $36.04 with a P/E ratio of 413.90 and P/S ratio of 0.90. The dividend yield of Deutsche Bank Ag stocks is 2.10%.David Dreman (Trades, Portfolio) owns 58,725 shares as of 03/31/2014, an increase of 404.64% from the previous quarter. This position accounts for 0.2% of the $1.29 billion portfolio of Dreman Value Management. Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio) owns 6,250 shares as of 03/31/2014, which accounts for 0.0015% of the $18.53 billion portfolio of GAMCO Investors.Ross Stores Inc (ROST) Reached the 52-Week Low of $67.16The prices of Ross Stores Inc (ROST) shares have declined to close to the 52-week low of $67.16, which is 21.2% off the 52-week high of $81.99. Ross Stores Inc is owned by 14 Gurus we are tracking. Among them, 7 have added to their positions during the past quarter. 5 reduced their positions.Ross Stores, Inc., is a Delaware Corporation. It turned public with its IPO in August 1985. Ross Stores Inc has a market cap of $14.21 billion; its shares were traded at around $67.16 with a P/E ratio of 17.00 and P/S ratio of 1.39. The dividend yield of Ross Stores Inc stocks is 1.10%. Ross Stores Inc had an annual average earnings growth of 23.20% over the past 10 years. GuruFocus rated Ross Stores Inc the business predictability rank of 4.5-star.ROST recently reported earnings per share for the 13 weeks ended May 3, 2014 of $1.15, up from $1.07 fo

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  After volatile trading this morning following its earnings release, Ross Stores (ROST) has headed higher this afternoon.

  Ross Stores reported a first-quarter profit of $1.15 per share, meeting analyst forecasts, though sales of $2.68 billion missed forecasts for $2.69 billion. Same-store sales rose 1%, which was at the bottom of the range Ross Stores had provided earlier. Ross also raised the low-end of its full year guidance.

  MKM Partners‘ Patrick McKeever�says don’t blame JC Penney (JCP) for Ross Stores’ less-than-blockbuster results:

  Same-store sales increased 1%, which is commendable in the context of all the negative comps across the apparel space, but it was a bit disappointing for Ross, which has shown greater outperformance in recent years. While there’s some concern about JC Penney’s return to sales growth and increased promotional intensity, we do not believe this has been a significant factor for Ross, just as we don’t think Ross saw much benefit during JC Penney’s near implosion. Accordingly, we view this, at most, as a marginal issue.

  Cowen’s John Kernan and Jerry Gray think the second half of the year will be better for Ross as it takes advantage of weakness at Sears (SHLD):

  We see Ross Stores’ same-store sales potentially accelerating into the 2H of 2014 as the retail traffic environment normalizes and inventory overhangs decline at competitors. Aside from JCPenney’s one quarter of resurgence, the mid-tier department store channel remains a share donator, and we see weakness and store closures at Sears and Kmart as market share and real estate opportunity for Ross Stores. We note Sears and K-Mart have a $9.5B apparel and soft goods business.

  Shares of Ross Stores have gained 1% to $68.77 today after dropping as much as 0.4% earlier this morning. Sears has dropped 1.3% to $37.59, while JC Penney has gained 1% to $8.96.

• [By Howard Gold]

  The only retail stocks he likes now are high-end emporia like Saks (SKS), which has agreed to a buyout from Hudson's Bay, and off-price retailer Ross Stores (ROST), whose stock has risen 700% from its lows.

Top 5 Retail Stocks To Buy Right Now: Staples Inc.(SPLS)

Staples, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an office products company. The company offers various office supplies and services, office machines and related products, computers and related products, and office furniture under Staples, Quill, and other proprietary brands. It also provides copy and print services to retail and delivery customers, as well as technology services through its EasyTech business. The company sells and delivers office products and services directly to businesses and consumers through Internet retail, including Staples.com and Quill.com, as well as through contract sales force, direct mail catalog business, and retail stores. As of January 28, 2012, it operated 2,295 retail stores in 48 states and the District of Columbia in the United States; and 10 provinces and 2 territories in Canada, as well as in Belgium, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, the United Kingdom, China, Argentina, and Australia. The company also operated 124 distribution and fulfillment centers in 29 states in the United States; 7 provinces in Canada; and in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, China, Argentina, Brazil, and Australia. Staples, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is based in Framingham, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael Flannelly]

  Early on Wednesday, office supplies retailer Staples, Inc. (SPLS) announced that it has completed the acquisition of Runa, a San Mateo, California-based software company. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

  Runa provides software that helps online retailers increase sales by personalizing shopping experience.

  ��una has a unique platform and outstanding talent with experience in e-commerce and online marketplaces,��said Ronald Sargent, chief executive officer and chairman, Staples. ��ith Runa, we��e adding technology to better serve our customers with personalized items, offers, and delivery estimates, all in real-time. Runa will allow us to tap into the wealth of engineering and e-commerce expertise in the Silicon Valley area.��/p>

  Staples noted that this acquisition is just the latest step in the company’s quest to invest in e-commerce capabilities at a time when its brick and mortar stores struggle to increase traffic. Runa’s facility in San Mateo will serve as the newest Staples Lab, following locations in Seattle and Cambridge.

  Staples shares were inactive during pre-market trading on Wednesday. The stock is up 29.82% year-to-date.

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Three-dimensional printing may be as easy as tapping the "easy" button, now that Staples (NASDAQ: SPLS  ) has become the first major U.S. retailer to begin stocking 3-D printers. The retailer is offering 3D Systems' (NYSE: DDD  ) Cube 3D at some of its stores.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big Earnings Movers: J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) is up 8.4% at $9.44 after a lousy report but some hopeful remarks. Lowe�� Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) is down 6.2% at $47.34 after disappointing results and a weakish outlook. Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) is down 1.6% at $15.10. Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) is up 2.1% at $84.53 even though the outlook is a bit weak.

Top 5 Retail Stocks To Buy Right Now: Zumiez Inc (ZUMZ)

Zumiez Inc. (Zumiez) is a specialty retailer of action sports related apparel, footwear, equipment and accessories operating under the Zumiez brand name. As of January 28, 2012, the Company operated 434 stores in the United States and 10 stores in Canada. In addition, the Company operates a Website that sells merchandise online. At January 28, 2012, its stores averaged approximately 2,900 square feet. Its apparel offerings include tops, bottoms, outerwear and accessories, such as caps, bags and backpacks, belts, jewelry and sunglasses. Zumiez�� footwear offerings primarily consist of action sports related athletic shoes and sandals. Its equipment offerings, or hardgoods, include skateboards, snowboards and ancillary gear, such as boots and bindings. The Company also offers a selection of other items, such as miscellaneous novelties.

The Company supplements its merchandise assortment with a select offering of private label products across many of its apparel product categories. During the fiscal year ended January 28, 2012 (fiscal 2011), its private label merchandise represented 17.7% of the Company�� net sales. The Company sources its private label merchandise from foreign manufacturers worldwide.

The Company competes with Abercrombie & Fitch, Aeropostale, American Apparel, American Eagle Outfitters, Billabong, CCS, Forever 21, Hollister, Hot Topic, Old Navy, Pacific Sunwear of California, The Buckle, Wet Seal, Tilly��, Urban Outfitters, Big 5 Sporting Goods, Dick�� Sporting Goods, Sport Chalet and The Sports Authority.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Zumiez (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) is projected to post its Q2 earnings at $0.23 per share on revenue of $176.89 million.

  Methode Electronics (NYSE: MEI) is estimated to report its Q1 earnings at $0.40 per share on revenue of $193.69 million.

• [By DailyFinance Staff]

  Stocks bounced in and out of the plus column before picking a direction on Friday. Unfortunately, the path chosen was down again, though not far. The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) extended its losing streak to five days, dropping another 43 points. The Standard & Poor's 500 (^GSPC) fell 5 and the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) lost 15 points. In all, each of the major averages lost in the neighborhood of a quarter of a percent Friday, and all lost ground for the week. Meanwhile, another once-popular teen retailer took a tumble. Shares of Aeropostale (ARO) tumbled 20 percent after the retailer posted a wider than expected quarterly loss. The stock is now down 60 percent over the past year. But investors were buying some other retailers. Zumiez (ZUMZ), also geared toward teens, rose 2½ percent despite forecasting a loss in the current quarter. A couple of chains geared toward women did well. Ulta Salon (ULTA) gained nearly 6½ percent as earnings topped expectations. Ann (ANN), best known for its Ann Taylor stores, rose 7½ percent. And Coach (COH) gained 2 percent. Other gainers today: Green Mountain (GMCR), maker of Keurig, was up 7 percent, after expanding its deal with Starbucks. Liberty Media (LSTZA) ended its deal to buy those shares of Sirius XM (SIRI) it doesn't already own. Both stocks gained on the news; Liberty up 7 percent, Sirius up 2 percent. And Castlight Health (CSLT) soared nearly 150 percent above its $16 a share IPO price. The company, which helps workers choose healthcare benefits, stands to gain from Obamacare. On the downside: Tesla (TSLA) lost another 3 percent on reports that New York could become the fifth state to block the company from selling direct to consumers. Still, Tesla has a pretty good track record. It's stock has soared more than 500 percent over the past year. Biotechs continued to lose ground. Celgene (CELG) fell 4 percent on a double dose of bad news. British regulators reportedly plan to rejec