Nordstrom (JWN) On Expansion Spree, Peers Curb Store Count

Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE:JWN) is one resilient company that continues to progress with store expansion plans despite a backdrop where most retailers are curbing store count. Notably, the company came up with plans to open another Nordstrom Rack store in California in spring of 2018.

Spread over 30,000 square feet, the new Rack store will be located at The Promenade at Town Center in Santa Clarita, CA. The mall is located about 35 miles away from downtown Los Angeles, off the I-5 and at the crossroads of Magic Mountain Parkway and McBean Parkway.

While Nordstrom operates many stores in the Los Angeles area, this store will mark its first store in Santa Clarita. The new store will share business space with seven other renowned retailers in the region. Apart from the aforementioned store, the company is also scheduled to open a new Nordstrom Rack store at FIGat7th in downtown Los Angeles and relocate a full-line store to Los Angeles' Westfield Century City in fall this year.

Being the off-price retail segment of the company, Nordstrom Rack offers fashion-savvy customers a wide range of on-trend apparel, footwear and other accessories at discounted prices. These Racks usually keep items from the main Nordstrom stores as well as online store, Nordstrom.com. Further, these stores stack products from other major brands sold by the company.

Nordstrom has always been aggressive with its store expansion strategy. The company has opened a total of 298 stores since 1990, while it closed only 17 stores. Additionally, the company is scheduled to open three full-line and 12 Nordstrom Rack stores this fall, including Rack store at Woodmore Towne Center in Glenarden, MD.

The company currently operates 354 outlets across 40 states. Its portfolio includes 122 full-line stores across the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada, two Jeffrey boutiques, 221 Nordstrom Racks and two clearance stores.

While Nordstrom continues to expand stores, its peers in the department store space including the likes of Macy’s Inc. (NYSE:M) , Sears Holdings Corp. and J. C. Penney Company Inc. (NYSE:JCP) are concentrating on optimizing store fleets in order to stay competitive. Additionally, apparel retailer American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE:AEO) has also resorted to store closures, while sporting goods company DICK’S Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE:DKS) recently announced its intention to bring a slowdown in store growth plan.

Coming back to Nordstrom, this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company’s share price trend reveals that the stock advanced 5.5% in the last six months, significantly outperforming the Zacks categorized Retail – Apparel/Shoe industry’s fall of 23.4%.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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