Retailer Boot Barn's Niche Focus Drives An 80% YTD Return

Yolowire 12-Nov-2024 10:42 AM

Small-cap stocks are back. After more than a decade of underperformance, stocks with market capitalizations of $5 billion U.S. or less are once again outperforming and leading market gains.

The Russell 2000 index, a gauge of U.S. small-cap equities, has risen 11% so far in November and is outpacing the benchmark S&P 500’s 5.2% advance this month, according to FactSet.

Small-cap stocks started trending higher this past summer as investors began rotating capital out of high-flying growth stocks and mega-cap technology names such as %Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA).

Small caps now appear to have even more momentum as investors question the sustainability of the market rally and the future path of interest rates under president-elect Donald Trump.

The Russell 2000 index is up 21% on the year, nearly matching the 26% gain in the S&P 500.

With small-cap stocks on a tear, we here at Yolowire are launching a new series spotlighting some of the best investment opportunities.

Today, we look at western apparel retailer Boot Barn (NYSE:BOOT).

With a market capitalization of $4 billion U.S., Boot Barn is definitely a small-cap stock.

However, the share price performance of the company that specializes in cowboy boots and hats has been anything but small, having risen 81% this year and nearly doubled in the last 12 months.

Through five years, Boot Barn’s stock has risen 227%. Yet even with the meteoric rise, the company’s shares currently trade at 27 times future earnings estimates, which is about inline with other equities that trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

California-based Boot Barn has achieved success with a niche focus on western wear and a strategy that focuses on slow and steady growth.

The company recently reported decent third-quarter financial results and raised its guidance, saying it now expects full-year earnings of $5.30 U.S. to $5.60 U.S. a share on revenue of $1.87 billion U.S. to $1.91 billion U.S.

Best of all, a buying opportunity looks to have opened with Boot Barn’s stock after the company announced that its longtime chief executive officer (CEO) Jim Conroy is departing.

News that Conroy is leaving Boot Barn to take the helm of off-price retailer %RossStores (NASDAQ:ROST) sent Boot Barn’s stock down 20% in a single trading day.

John Hazen, Boot Barn’s current chief digital officer, will serve as interim CEO while a permanent replacement for Conroy is found.

Analysts say investors over-reacted to the leadership change. %JeffriesFinancialGroup (NYSE:JEF) says Boot Barn’s stock should trade at $170 U.S. per share, which is 25% higher than the current share price of $136.41 U.S.