Segment dips more than 7 percent for the period, but drop is deceiving. Excluding the declines by U.K.-based JD Fashion and Sports Direct, caused in part by currency exchange fluctuation, the segment would have essentially been flat for a third consecutive week. Seven declined, led on a percentage basis by the aforementioned Sports Direct, and eight rose, paced by Big 5. Dick’s Sporting Goods gets its target price raised to $42 by UBS. Foot Locker invests $3 million in Ntwrk, a video-based shopping app for young consumers with ties to celebrities. It was founded in Oct. 2018. FL is expected to use limited-edition footwear releases on Ntwrk to boost consumer interest. Macy’s is eliminating 78 positions at its South Windsor, CT logistics and operational center for its Backstage unit by Feb. 14, 2020. Hibbett Sports hires Scott Humphrey as its new interim CFO. Sportsman’s Warehouse lands a “buy” rating and a $7.00 share price target from Piper Jaffray. Kohl’s is opening a new curated program for new brands in its Chicago and Philadelphia stores on Oct. 10 with hopes it will attract younger consumers into its doors. Walmart, according to Bloomberg, is negotiating with outside parties to possible sell-off JetBlack. The text-to-order, subscription business, launched two years ago, is currently only available in New York City. WMT could decide to keep the unit and eventually scale it for its entire business.

As the Dow dropped 1.1 percent for the period, the segment came in nearly 1 percent higher to snap its one-week decline. Seven, led by Nike on a percentage basis, were higher; eight stocks fell. More than a half dozen analysts raised their stock price target on the Swoosh after the company reported solid Q1 results that beat expectations and were extremely strong in China (See story). Lululemon, which had a “short interest” on 3.34 million of its shares in September, is exiting its seven Ivivva brand stores. VF Corp. has a new tagline in “Purpose Led, Performance Driven” with a five-year CAGR of 7-8 percent for revenues and an overall operating margin of 15+ percent in FY24. Under Armour needs to triple its current operating margin to be on par with Nike’s. In Q2, the company improved its gross margins by 170 basis points, which suggests it’s making progress turning its business around.