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Retail Winners & Losers: Zale, Rite Aid
By Jeanine Poggi
TheStreet.com Staff Reporter
11/02/09 03:49 PM EST

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Despite upbeat housing and manufacturing data, the retail sector is remaining relatively unchanged from last week.

But while the S&P Retail Index is nearly flat, there are some big movers within the sector. Zale (ZLC:NYSE) is one of the biggest gainers, surging 6.6% to $5.04, after falling more than 20% on Friday.

Last week, the jeweler announced that it widened its loss in its fourth quarter and is being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission on accounting issues.

Wal-Mart Stores (WMT:NYSE) , meanwhile, is up 1% to $50.17 this afternoon after it announced it is cutting prices on toys by 20% to 30%. This is the second round of price cuts for the category, as Wal-Mart solidifies its place as the price leader for the holiday season.

Nordstrom (JWN:NYSE) has risen by 1.1% to $32.14 after it was upgraded by Deutsche Bank to buy from hold, as it predicts sales growth.

The high-end department store's move to cut prices and offer higher-quality merchandise should give it a boost, analyst Bill Dreher wrote in a research note.

99 Cents Only Stores (NDN:NYSE) is jumping 5.5% to $11.99 ahead of its second-quarter earnings release on Wednesday. Meanwhile, other notable gainers include Chico's FAS (CHS:NYSE) , which is advancing 4.9% to $12.54, Dollar Tree (DLTR:NYSE) , which is gaining 5% to $47.38, and Vitamin Shoppe (VSI:NYSE) , which is increasing by 4.2% to $18.31.

On the less sunny side of the Street, Office Depot (ODP:NYSE) is tumbling 5.3% to $5.73 after it was downgraded by Credit Suisse to underperform from neutral.

Analyst Gary Balter sees a tough road ahead for the office supplies retailer and said it is unlikely to earn a profit next year. He prefers OfficeMax (OMX:NYSE) as an investment.

Likewise, American Apparel (APP:NYSE) is plunging 9.8% to $2.77 in afternoon trading, Pacific Sunwear of California (PSUN:NYSE) is falling 5.2% to $5.72, Talbots (TLB:NYSE) is losing 5.7% to $8.56 and Rite Aid (RAD:NYSE) is off by 3.1% to $1.25.

-- Reported by Jeanine Poggi in New York

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