5 Best Retail Stocks To Buy Now

Home improvement equipment company Home Depot is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the coronavirus crisis, as consumers confined to home spend more time fixing and renovating their houses. In the third quarter, Home Depot’s sales jumped 23.2% and reached $33.54. Sales at stores increased by 24.1% in the period, crushing past the Wall Street’s estimate of 17% increase.

The retailer is investing heavily into its digital infrastructure and its efforts are paying off. In the third quarter, sales coming from online channels jumped about 80%, while 60% of online orders were fulfilled through a store.

A total of 73 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in Home Depot entering the fourth quarter.

Here’s what Ensemble Capital Management had to say about HD stock in their Q4 2020 Investor Letter:

“A notable detractor from our performance came from our investment in Home Depot. Home Depot reported outstanding results during 2020, with the stock outperforming the S&P 500 for the full year. But after strong second and third quarter performance, the stock was down slightly in the fourth quarter, declining approximately 4%. We believe that home improvement spending will remain elevated in the years ahead as housing activity continues to rebound after years of lower than normal rates of Americans moving.”