Stock of the day JD Sports

What: The crucial Christmas trading period for retailers has so far proven to be mixed. Some, such as bellwether Next have, surprised on the upside, meanwhile others such as Debenhams, have more than disappointed, slotting in with the idea that retailers will bear the brunt of the squeeze being placed on the UK consumer as prices rise and wages fall in real terms. 

Tomorrow, Tuesday is the turn of JD Sports, to release their Christmas numbers. Generally speaking, JD Sports tends to shine over this period. Just looking at the chart for the past few winters, the JD Sport share price growth during the winter months appears to be the norm. Focusing in on the chart to the share price moving towards this update, we can see that JD Sport is up an impressive 11% in the past month alone, whilst it trades at its highest level since mid-October. 

Let’s not forget that “athleisure” is one of the fastest growing fashion trends, boosted by millennials desire for less formality in the work space. Overall sales in athleisure have increased by 42% in just 7 years and are worth around £7 billion. JD Sports monopoly of athleisure gear means it is well positioned to take advantage of this growing trend and has been doing so successfully over recent years. Furthermore, JD’s global expansion is taking shape and so far the most recent venture into South Korea is tipped to do well. 

How: The share price is up over 1.5% today, we can see the expectations are running high for tomorrow, but JD Sports has a habit of delivering at this time of year. Better than forecast results have often resulted in profit upgrades. JD Sports is currently trading at 366p, Investec Securities re bullish the stock and have tipped the share price to rally over 100p to 475p going forwards.