Looking for a Cheap Retailer to Buy on the Upswing? Here's an Idea
Few industries were as devastated by the pandemic as major retailers, particularly those who rely on in-store experiences. The "big box" retailers were among those hit hard: think Macy's, JC Penney's, Nordstrom, and Kohl's.
But as the pandemic risk slowly but surely fades, many of these battered down retailers may present opportunities for investors to buy on the upswing. And compared to Nordstrom and Kohl's (see analysis below), Macy's is looking undervalued.
Macy's posted a better-than-expected holiday shopping season. Net sales declined -18.7%, but that was better than the -22.6% decline analysts expected. Anytime a company's actual earnings are better than expected, it is usually good news for the stock price.
Net income was also a positive surprise. Macy's earned $160 million in Q4, which widely surpassed the $14.3 million expected by the street. Macy's took big steps to cut costs and said in a statement that it will continue to keep costs at a minimum going forward. Another hint of good news: Macy's reported that the holiday shopping season brought in 7 million new customers, and many of them were younger than the existing customer base. That's good news for the future, particularly if Macy's can continue reinventing its business model to cater to online shoppers.
At the end of the day, Macy's still incurred a full-year loss of $3.9 billion, and retailers in that category face an challenging future. But compared to Kohl's and Nordstrom, Macy's is trading at roughly half the multiple -- meaning investors may have a short-term opportunity to capture a bit of upside on the economic rebound. Below, Tickeron's A.I.dvisor takes a closer look at Macy's, Kohl's, and Nordstrom, with investment insights and detailed fundamental analysis.
Momentum Indicator for M turns positive, indicating new upward trend
M saw its Momentum Indicator move above the 0 level on August 15, 2025. This is an indication that the stock could be shifting in to a new upward move. Traders may want to consider buying the stock or buying call options. Tickeron's A.I.dvisor looked at 90 similar instances where the indicator turned positive. In of the 90 cases, the stock moved higher in the following days. The odds of a move higher are at .
Technical Analysis (Indicators)
Bullish Trend Analysis
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) for M just turned positive on August 14, 2025. Looking at past instances where M's MACD turned positive, the stock continued to rise in of 55 cases over the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are .
The 50-day moving average for M moved above the 200-day moving average on September 11, 2025. This could be a long-term bullish signal for the stock as the stock shifts to an upward trend.
Following a 3-day Advance, the price is estimated to grow further. Considering data from situations where M advanced for three days, in of 288 cases, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are .
The Aroon Indicator entered an Uptrend today. In of 196 cases where M Aroon's Indicator entered an Uptrend, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued Uptrend are .
Bearish Trend Analysis
The RSI Indicator demonstrates that the ticker has stayed in the overbought zone for 9 days. The longer the ticker stays in the overbought zone, the sooner a price pull-back is expected.
The Stochastic Oscillator demonstrated that the ticker has stayed in the overbought zone for 9 days. The longer the ticker stays in the overbought zone, the sooner a price pull-back is expected.
Following a 3-day decline, the stock is projected to fall further. Considering past instances where M declined for three days, the price rose further in of 62 cases within the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are .
M broke above its upper Bollinger Band on September 03, 2025. This could be a sign that the stock is set to drop as the stock moves back below the upper band and toward the middle band. You may want to consider selling the stock or exploring put options.
The Tickeron Valuation Rating of (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is slightly undervalued in the industry. This rating compares market capitalization estimated by our proprietary formula with the current market capitalization. This rating is based on the following metrics, as compared to industry averages: P/B Ratio (1.051) is normal, around the industry mean (2.290). P/E Ratio (9.903) is within average values for comparable stocks, (36.082). M's Projected Growth (PEG Ratio) (2.259) is slightly higher than the industry average of (1.079). Dividend Yield (0.041) settles around the average of (0.038) among similar stocks. P/S Ratio (0.215) is also within normal values, averaging (5.388).
The Tickeron Price Growth Rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating steady price growth. M’s price grows at a higher rate over the last 12 months as compared to S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron Seasonality Score of (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is fair valued in the industry. The Tickeron Seasonality score describes the variance of predictable price changes around the same period every calendar year. These changes can be tied to a specific month, quarter, holiday or vacation period, as well as a meteorological or growing season.
The Tickeron SMR rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating strong sales and a profitable business model. SMR (Sales, Margin, Return on Equity) rating is based on comparative analysis of weighted Sales, Income Margin and Return on Equity values compared against S&P 500 index constituents. The weighted SMR value is a proprietary formula developed by Tickeron and represents an overall profitability measure for a stock.
The Tickeron Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating well-balanced risk and returns. The average Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for the industry is 72, placing this stock slightly better than average.
The Tickeron PE Growth Rating for this company is (best 1 - 100 worst), pointing to worse than average earnings growth. The PE Growth rating is based on a comparative analysis of stock PE ratio increase over the last 12 months compared against S&P 500 index constituents.
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Fundamental Analysis Ratings
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General Information
an operator of department stores
Industry DepartmentStores
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