Barchart Stock Chart of the Day – March 4, 2009

Our Chart of the Day, Big Lots (BIG) is expecting big profits. And in the battered down retail sector, that’s big news.

We found Big Lots at the top of Barchart’s Daily What's Hot - Biggest Up Moves page and decided to investigate. Today Big Lots reported earnings and raised guidance for fiscal 2009 above analysts’ expectations. The result? A 20% jump in the stocks price.


Barchart Opinions for BIG are:

    Short Term Indicators Average: 20% Sell
    Medium Term Indicators Average: 25% Sell
    Long Term Indicators Average: 67% Sell
    Overall Average: 24% Sell

Barchart Trend Spotter Signal: Long since February 6, 2009.

Sector Performance: BIG is a member of the Retail - Discount sector, where it is the 5th best performing stock out of 13 stocks in the sector. While the sector as a whole has a weighted Alpha of -18.53%, BIG itself has a weighted Alpha of -16.20% indicating that it is about the same strength than the sector as a whole. To learn more about weighted Alpha, visit the Barchart Learning Center.

How we spotted this chart: We noticed BIG while viewing Barchart’s Daily What's Hot - Biggest Up Moves page. We displayed the full list noticed BIG at the top of the page with a 20% daily move at noon. While researching the stock, we learned of its earnings report this morning and its raising of full year guidance. While looking at the chart we noticed this morning’s gap and breakout to the upside of a long sideways congestion pattern.

Recent Developments:

On March 4, 2009 Big Lots (BIG) reported EPS for the 4th quarter at 96 cents, down from $1.04 in the same quarter last year. Revenue also fell to $1.37 billion from $1.41 billion in the year earlier period.

At the same time Big Lots raised full year guidance to between $1.75 and $1.90. Previously analysts had expected BIG to produce $1.74.