Takeaway: Hedgeye Retail Ideas List. US cotton yield forecasts look healthy-good news for HBI & GIL. AAPL builds smartwatch team as LG & Samsung debut

HEDGEYE RETAIL IDEAS LIST

Retail Callouts (7/7): HBI, GIL, AAPL, PETM, WMT, APP - chart1 7 7 2014

EVENTS TO WATCH

Tuesday (7/8)

  • TCS - Earnings Call: 4:30pm

Thursday (7/10)

  • FDO - Earnings Call: 10:00am

Friday (7/11)

  • PSMT - Earnings Call: 12:00pm

COMPANY NEWS

HBI, GIL - Cotton Boom Goes Bust as Rain-Soaked Texas Crop Sets Glut

(http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-03/cotton-boom-goes-bust-as-rain-soaked-texas-crop-sets-glut.html)

  • "Two months ago, a drought threatened output in the U.S., the world’s largest exporter, and stockpiles were heading for a two-decade low. Then came the rains in Texas, the top grower, sparking a planting surge that the government said will send inventories to a six-year high before the 2015 harvest."
  • "The 'stunning' weather reversal may boost U.S. output by 32 percent, Plexus Cotton Ltd. said in a report. Prices that in March were the highest in 25 months are now down more than any commodity this year."

Takeaway: Cotton is down almost 20% from its YTD highs. Increased yield forecasts from the US coupled with China's decision to release some its cotton reserves, which accounts for nearly 60% of global stocks, means that the supply side of the pricing equation looks relatively healthy. Material cost deflation should help offset the labor cost headwinds facing names like HBI and GIL.

 

AAPL - Apple poaches another luxury executive as iWatch nears

(http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/04/us-apple-tagheuer-idUSKBN0F91NA20140704)

  • "Apple has poached a senior executive from Swiss luxury watch brand Tag Heuer, which could be to help it with the launch of its iWatch expected this autumn."
  • "Tag Heuer, part of luxury goods group LVMH, said on Friday its vice president for sales, Patrick Pruniaux, who had been with the brand for seven years, was leaving on Monday to join Apple. It did not say what his new job would be."

Takeaway: Interesting that Samsung and LG are both releasing smart watches today. And AAPL hired someone from Tag. I'll probably buy one. But it's so surprising to me that everyone is giving the smart watch a free pass at being a success. The biggest hurdle these companies face is that people under 18 simply do not wear watches. 

 

OTHER NEWS

 

PETM - PetSmart Issues Statement Regarding JANA Partners Schedule 13D Filing

(http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=196265&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1944885&highlight=)

  • "PetSmart welcomes open communications with its shareholders and values constructive input toward the goal of enhancing shareholder value. Our Board and management team are committed to creating value for all PetSmart shareholders, and we will continue to take actions to accomplish this goal and position the Company for growth and success."

 

APP - American Apparel in Talks to Raise New Financing

(http://online.wsj.com/articles/american-apparel-in-talks-to-raise-finances-from-standard-general-1404674792?cb=logged0.2128356599714607)

  • "American Apparel Inc. is in talks to raise new financing from hedge fund Standard General that would allow the company to pay off a loan that came due after it ousted founder Dov Charney, people familiar with the matter said."
  • "As part of the talks, the two sides also have reached an agreement in principle to replace all of the company's board—except for its two co-chairmen—with directors who have more industry experience, though no formal agreement has been signed, people familiar with the situation said."
  • "Still unclear is what role Mr. Charney will play at the company going forward. His fate depends on the outcome of a continuing investigation into his conduct, people familiar with the situation said."

 

WMT - Asda restructuring to cut 1,360 jobs

(http://www.bbc.com/news/business-28149288)

  • "Asda has announced a shake-up of its management structure, which is likely to result in 1,360 redundancies."
  • "The retailer, which has 578 stores across the country, says 1,360 people are expected to take redundancy, as staff choose to leave or do not meet the overall selection criteria for the new roles."
  • "Asda currently employs over 170,000 people across the UK."

 

Bonobos - Online retailer Bonobos raises $55 million in funding to open more stores

(http://www.chainstoreage.com/article/online-retailer-bonobos-raises-55-million-funding-open-more-stores)

  • "Online menswear brand Bonobos has raised a total of $55 million in venture capital funding, bringing the brand's total funding to $128 million. The company plans to use a large part of the latest investment to quadruple its physical store count, growing from 10 locations to 40 nationwide by 2016"