Home Depot Makes Wells Fargo List of Favored Retail Stocks

Retailers’ stocks have spit the bit this year as soaring inflation and interest rates have sparked concern about consumers’ buying power.

The S&P Retail Select Industry Index has dropped 27% year to date. But Wells Fargo analysts see opportunities among defensive plays.

“In the wake of a decidedly mixed first-quarter-earnings season, it’s clear that hard-line retail categories are feeling the pinch across multiple fronts,” they wrote in a commentary.

Macro Uncertainty, Inflation

That includes “rising macro uncertainty and a sharply inflationary backdrop,” they said. It also includes “signs that bigger ticket, discretionary goods may finally be falling out of favor after two-plus years of outsized pandemic-fueled growth.”