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Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: J.C. Penney, Target, Kohl's, Bed Bath & Beyond and Macy's

Business Wire, May 5, 2008

CHICAGO -- Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP), Target (NYSE: TGT), Kohl's (NYSE: KSS), Bed Bath & Beyond (Nasdaq: BBBY) and Macy's (NYSE: M).

See the latest posts to the Analyst Blog: http://www.zacks.com/blog/post_info.html?g=6

Here are highlights from Friday's Analyst Blog:

Questioning the Jobs Statistics

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Just a gut check on the reality of the numbers -- let's look at the B/D numbers for construction. The number in the official report was a decline of 61,000 construction jobs in April. That is after a B/D adjustment of plus 45,000 jobs. How reasonable is it to assume in the current environment that people are flocking to start construction companies right now, enough of these brand new firms to be creating 45,000 new jobs?

Even within the official report were some troubling numbers. The number of people working part time for economic reasons rose by 306,000 in April to 5.2 million. That is a 6.25% increase in just one month. Over the last year, the number of involuntary part-timers is up 849,000 -- a 19.5% increase. The average workweek fell by 0.1 hour to 33.7 hours. The average manufacturing workweek fell by 0.3 hours to 40.9 hours.

The average hourly wage rose by just $0.01, hardly enough to keep up with inflation, particularly headline inflation which is what counts for most people who do not sit on the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee. Combined with falling hours, this caused the average weekly wage to fall by $1.45. The index of aggregate hours worked fell by 0.4.

These numbers do not bode well for the ability of the U.S. consumer to go on spending at the usual rate. What money they get is going into necessities like food and gasoline, leaving little left over for discretionary purchases. Avoid the retail sector, particularly mid-range firms like J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP), Target (NYSE: TGT), Kohl's (NYSE: KSS), Bed Bath & Beyond (Nasdaq: BBBY) and Macy's (NYSE: M).

Get the full analysis of all these stocks by going to http://at.zacks.com/?id=2649.

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Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons.

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Visit http://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

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Business Services Industry

Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: J.C. Penney, Target, Kohl's, Bed Bath & Beyond and Macy's

Business Wire, May 5, 2008

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