What Happened?
A number of stocks fell in the afternoon session after reports pointed to a broad-based weakening of consumer health, highlighted by rising loan delinquencies and falling spending intentions.
This downturn was fueled by multiple reports signaling a deteriorating financial situation for consumers. Data revealed that even upper-income Americans are increasingly falling behind on credit card and auto loan payments, suggesting big-ticket spending is fading. Further dampening sentiment, the latest Consumer Confidence report, despite a headline increase, showed that consumers are being more cautious. The auto sector also flashed warning signs, with projections for July showing flat sales compared to last year, weighed down by high prices and interest rates.
The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.
Among others, the following stocks were impacted:
- Department Store company Dillard's (NYSE: DDS) fell 5.5%. Is now the time to buy Dillard's? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Department Store company Macy's (NYSE: M) fell 3.2%. Is now the time to buy Macy's? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Home Furniture Retailer company Arhaus (NASDAQ: ARHS) fell 4.8%. Is now the time to buy Arhaus? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Specialty Retail company Petco (NASDAQ: WOOF) fell 4.7%. Is now the time to buy Petco? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Beauty and Cosmetics Retailer company Warby Parker (NYSE: WRBY) fell 3.1%. Is now the time to buy Warby Parker? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
Zooming In On Dillard's (DDS)
Dillard’s shares are quite volatile and have had 18 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 1 day ago when the stock gained 3% on the news that JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its price target on the retailer. Investment analysts at the firm increased their price objective to $458.00 from $368.00, citing a strong end to the quarter that was driven by a rise in consumer activity in July.
Despite the upgraded price target, JPMorgan maintained its 'underweight' rating, which signaled a continued cautious outlook on the stock's performance relative to the market. The market reacted positively to the price target change, and the shares reached a new all-time high of $511.02 during the session.
Dillard's is up 8.1% since the beginning of the year, and at $487.43 per share, it is trading close to its 52-week high of $513.16 from July 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Dillard’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $19,544.
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