Wedbush Notes Strength in Retailers with e-Commerce Presence, Maintains Outperform Ratings on PIR, BBBY, KIRK, BIG

Wedbush's Joan Storms is out with a research note highlighting better holiday performance among retailers with a solid presence in the e-commerce space compared to brick-and-mortar retailers. Storms specifically mentions Pier 1 PIR and Bed Bath & Beyond BBBY as two retailers with just such a presence. The analyst noted an increasing level of shoppers may be beginning to view Pier 1 as a spot for gift giving. Elsewhere in the sector, she also pointed at an impressive holiday assortment at Kirkland's KIRK. On the less optimistic side of things, Storms said the unrolling of a new merchandising initiative at Big Lots BIG was not implemented in time to catch holiday dollars. Storms maintains Outperform ratings on shares of Pier 1, Bed Bath & Beyond, Kirkland's and Big Lots. The SPDR S&P Retail ETF XRT is up about 4 percent since the low set at the beginning of November. The ETF, which some traders use as a broad metric on performance in the retail sector, is up more than 2 percent over the last six or seven trading sessions.