Consumer Companies Up As Target Reports Strong Holiday Sales -- Consumer Roundup

Shares of retailers and other consumer companies rose after another strong holiday-sales report from a major store. Shares of Target Corp. (TGT) rallied after the discounter said same-store sales for the months of November and December rose 3.4%, reversing a decline from a year earlier, in another sign that chain stores are figuring out strategies to counter the competitive threat from Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN). Target's report echoed those from Macy's Inc. (M), J.C. Penney Co. (JCP) and Kohl's Corp. (KSS), all of which reported sales growth in the critical holiday months. Shares of Urban Outfitters Inc. (URBN) slid after the youth fashion chain posted same-store sales growth short of investor expectations.

-Rob Curran, rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 09, 2018 16:10 ET (21:10 GMT)