Black Friday sales reflected lingering supply chain issues and lower foot traffic due to concerns over the newly identified omicron coronavirus variant. Hence it could be best to avoid retail stocks with weak financials — Gap (GPS) and Nordstrom (NYSE:JWN).Black Friday sales increased but reflected the supply chain challenges. According to Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) Analytics data, customers spent about $8.9 billion online on Black Friday, slightly less than the spending in 2020.
As per Sensormatic Solutions data, Black Friday traffic at retail stores was down 28.3% from its 2019 level due to the popularity of online purchases and shoppers spreading out their holiday spending throughout the season. Moreover, the newly identified omicron coronavirus variant triggered a worldwide alarm that caused stores on Black Friday to experience the lowest level of clearance goods for sale in five years.
Given this backdrop, fundamentally weak retail stocks, The Gap, Inc. (GPS) and Nordstrom, Inc. (JWN), could be best avoided now.