Big Lots, Inc. (BIG): Is This Discount Retailer a BIG Winner?

Big Lots’ new CEO, David Campisi, has a strong history of climbing his way up the corporate ladder, but there is one interesting note about Campisi that won’t inspire confidence.

Campisi’s CEO tenure at Respect Your Universe, a martial arts apparel company, ran from August 2012 through May 2013. During that time, the company’s stock dropped from $0.90 to $0.30. If Campisi was unable to improve a company with a market cap of $21.58 million and fewer than 50 employees, how is he going to turn around a massive discount retail operation with a $1.58 billion market cap and more than 13,000 employees? That said, he didn’t have much time to make a difference, and it’s possible that whatever moves he made at Respect Your Universe have yet to pay off.

Conclusion

If you’re looking to invest in a discount retail store, then there would be no sense in choosing Big Lots, Inc. (NYSE:BIG) when Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) and Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) are available options.

If you’re trying to choose between Wal-Mart and Target, then Wal-Mart is likely to be your best option. With the stock market hanging by a thread, you want a company that offers safety. During the financial crisis of 2008/2009, Wal-Mart shares dropped approximately 20% (almost like a win at the time), whereas Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) dropped approximately 45%. For the record, Big Lots dropped approximately 60%.

With a weak consumer and fierce competition that’s likely to increase, Big Lots, Inc. (NYSE:BIG) doesn’t look to be a good investment at this time.

Dan Moskowitz has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of Big Lots, Inc. (NYSE:BIG).

The article Is This Discount Retailer a BIG Winner? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Dan is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network — entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.

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