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The holiday season kicked off on Thanksgiving Day, and now it’s time for Black Friday — one of the busiest shopping days of the year. Retailers are splurging on early sales and special discounts and expect a record-breaking worldwide shopping frenzy this year.The attractive offers are likely to boost retail sales and lead to a surge in stock prices in the days to follow. While an individual stock is a great option to tap the Black Friday deals in the investment world, a basket approach through ETFs is diversified and more cost-effective at lower risk. Investors should stock up ETFs like SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT – Free Report), Amplify Online Retail ETF (IBUY – Free Report), VanEck Vectors Retail ETF (RTH – Free Report), and ProShares Online Retail ETF (ONLN – Free Report) this weekend.According to the National Retail Federation (“NRF”), about 182 million Americans are expected to shop either in-store or online during the Thanksgiving weekend (spanning five days from Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday), up 15.7 million from last year and the highest since NRF began tracking this data in 2017.Black Friday continues to be the most popular day to shop, with 72% (130.7 million) planning to shop, up from 69% in 2022. Cyber Monday is the second most popular day, likely to attract 39% (71.1 million) of those planning to shop over the weekend, slightly higher than 38% last year. Clothes are expected to remain the top-selling category during the Black Friday weekend, followed by gift cards and toys.Sales on Black Friday alone are expected to grow 5.7% and top $9.6 billion, according to Adobe Analytics.
Retailers on a Roll
The Black Friday online sales bonanza is in full swing as a number of retailers had already perked up their deals several weeks before. They are offering a range of exciting deals across various product categories. We have highlighted some of the best deals.Amazon (AMZN – Free Report) kicked off the Black Friday event on Nov 17, and it is set to continue through Nov 24. This event marks Amazon’s third major deal event of 2023. Amazon’s Black Friday deals feature some of the lowest prices of the year on select products from well-known brands like YETI, Peloton, LEGO, Lancôme and Ruggable. Notable deals include $70 off the new Apple Watch Series 9 and 20% off Dyson products. Lululemon Wunderlust Belt Bag is available for just $39.For gaming enthusiasts, there’s a 20% discount plus a $75 Target gift card on the Xbox Series X Console Diablo IV Bundle. Amazon also offers up to 75% off on select Nintendo Switch Games and up to 59% off on Arcade1Up Arcade Machines.Additionally, Amazon also unveiled its Cyber Monday plans, with a second sale launching on Nov 25 and running through Nov 27, to offer customers another chance to get rock-bottom prices ahead of the holiday gifting season.Apple (AAPL – Free Report) will kick off its Black Friday shopping event on Nov 24, which will run through Nov 27. The company is offering the best prices of the year on the latest second-generation AirPods Pro, Apple Watch Series 8, certain iPads and Mac laptops, Beats headphones, and even Apple Watch Ultra. Apple AirPods Pro 2 is available at the lowest price ever at just under $100.Wal-Mart (WMT – Free Report), the world’s largest retailer, kicked off its Black Friday deals on Nov 22, providing early access for Walmart+ members from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET and was later made available to the general public at 3 p.m. online. The Black Friday sale at Walmart is set to continue through Cyber Monday. Additionally, a special Cyber Monday sales event will begin on Nov 26. Some of the top deals include Xbox $50 Gift Card for $45, PlayStation Store $50 Gift Card for $45 and Beats Studio3 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones for $99 (previously $169).Target (TGT – Free Report) has already started its biggest savings of the season with four weeks of deals leading up to Black Friday on tens of thousands of items, including many up to 50% off, available wherever guests prefer to shop — in-store, online and on the Target app. Additionally, Target is offering special deals from Nov 23 to Nov 25, providing an additional incentive for shoppers during the peak shopping days of the Black Friday event.Best Buy’s (BBY – Free Report) official Black Friday sales event started on Nov 17 and will run through Nov 25, with deals across various categories, including TVs & Projectors, Laptops & Computers, Apple products, Video Games, Consoles & VR, and Major Appliances.
ETFs to Shop
Below, we have highlighted the ETFs in detail.SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT)SPDR S&P Retail ETF tracks the S&P Retail Select Industry Index, which provides exposure across large, mid and small-cap stocks. It holds well-diversified 78 stocks in its basket, with none making up for more than 2.3% share. SPDR S&P Retail ETF is well spread across various industries with a double-digit allocation each in apparel retail, specialty stores, automotive retail and broadline retail.SPDR S&P Retail ETF is the largest and most popular in the retail space, with AUM of $499.4 million and an average trading volume of 7.8 million shares. It charges 35 bps in annual fees and has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 (Buy) with a Medium risk outlook.Amplify Online Retail ETF (IBUY)Amplify Online Retail ETF offers global exposure to companies with significant revenues from the online retail business, traditional online retail, online travel, online marketplace and omni channel retail by tracking the EQM Online Retail Index. IBUY holds 72 stocks in its basket, with none accounting for more than 2.9% of assets. Amplify Online Retail ETF has the largest allocation in online retail at 39% and online marketplace at 38%.Amplify Online Retail ETF has attracted $176.9 million in its asset base and charges 65 bps in annual fees. IBUY trades in an average daily volume of 14,000 shares.VanEck Vectors Retail ETF (RTH)VanEck Vectors Retail ETF provides exposure to the 25 largest retail firms by tracking the MVIS US Listed Retail 25 Index, which measures the performance of the companies involved in retail distribution, wholesalers, online, direct mail and TV retailers, multi-line retailers, specialty retailers and food and other staples retailers. VanEck Vectors Retail ETF is highly concentrated on the top firm with double-digit exposure, while the other firms hold no more than 8.5% share.VanEck Vectors Retail ETF has amassed $172.2 million in its asset base and charges 35 bps in annual fees. It trades in a lower volume of 4,000 shares a day on average. VanEck Vectors Retail ETF has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a Medium risk outlook.ProShares Online Retail ETF (ONLN)ProShares Online Retail ETF offers exposure to the companies that principally sells online or through other non-store channels and then zeros in on the companies reshaping the retail space. It tracks the ProShares Online Retail Index, holding 19 stocks in its basket. ONLN is highly concentrated on the top firm, while the other firms hold no more than 8% of the assets.ProShares Online Retail ETF has accumulated $96.1 million in its asset base and charges 58 bps in annual fees. ONLN trades in an average daily volume of 18,000 shares.More By This Author:5 ETFs Worthy Of Special Thanks In 2023
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