All articles tagged with #discretionary spending
A potential U.S. government shutdown looms as Congress struggles to pass funding bills, risking unpaid federal employees, disrupted services, and delayed economic data, with political disagreements mainly over healthcare protections and budget priorities.
The Federal Reserve's "Beige Book" survey reveals a recent economic slowdown in the US, attributed to consumers reducing discretionary spending and showing more price sensitivity. Sales of items like furniture and appliances declined, while travel and tourism activity remained healthy. The Beige Book provides valuable insights into business conditions across the 12 Fed districts and is increasingly relied upon by central bank officials to assess the economy and inflation.
Dollar Tree has revised its annual sales forecast downward after missing third-quarter estimates and announced a review of its Family Dollar business, citing customers cutting back on discretionary spending. The company is considering store closures as part of the review process. Dollar Tree's CEO attributed the pressure on Family Dollar stores to higher food prices and borrowing costs, leading lower-income customers to reduce spending on higher-margin discretionary items. The company's gross margins were also impacted by higher wages and raw material expenses, as well as elevated retail shrink. Dollar Tree expects unfavorable shrink trends to continue in the fourth quarter and has adjusted its fiscal 2023 sales and profit outlook.
Wall Street is anticipating a divergence in retail earnings this week as the US consumer remains selective with their spending. Service-based retail stocks have seen an increase due to higher spending on travel, while automobile and parts stocks have declined. Companies in the consumer staples sector have fared better than those in the discretionary sector. Walmart has outperformed the S&P 500, benefiting from consumers trading down amid inflation, while Target has seen shares fall due to its higher dependence on discretionary spending. Home Depot, Target, and Walmart are among the retailers set to release earnings this week. Analysts have mixed views on the sector, with some expecting a slowdown driven by student loan repayments, declining excess savings, and higher borrowing costs.
Winnebago Industries reported a solid fourth-quarter earnings beat, with adjusted per-share profit exceeding expectations due to efficient cost management. However, the company faced a significant challenge of weaker discretionary spending, resulting in a nearly 35% decline in revenue compared to the previous year. Sales in its motorhome RV division fell short of consensus views, and unit deliveries plunged 52% year-over-year. Winnebago's CEO expects these trends to continue into the first half of the new fiscal year but remains optimistic about stabilization in consumer demand by the second half.
Target's shares have been downgraded by KeyBanc Capital Markets to "sector weight" from "overweight" due to the resumption of student loan payments stipulated by Congress' debt ceiling agreement, which poses a sizable headwind for discretionary spending for shoppers. This comes after the stock lost over $12.4 billion in market value due to the fallout from its Pride merchandising marketing campaign. JPMorgan also downgraded the stock last week, citing the possibility of a decline in sales due to consumers pulling back spending amid persistent inflation.
US President Joe Biden and top Republican lawmaker Kevin McCarthy are close to reaching a deal on the US debt ceiling, with the parties just $70 billion apart on discretionary spending. The agreement is expected to be a slimmed-down version with top line numbers for discretionary spending, including a number for military spending, but leaving lawmakers to hammer out the fine details of categories like housing and education through the normal appropriations process in the months ahead. The end result would likely just put guardrails on future budget talks, not spell out detailed spending.
General Motors is cutting "several hundred" contract jobs as part of its $2 billion cost-savings program. The contract employees work at GM's Global Technical Center in Warren and other locations. To cut $2 billion by the end of next year, GM has already offered buyouts to most of its salaried workforce. Beyond buyouts, GM is also looking to cut discretionary spending in areas such as corporate travel and marketing, and focus on prioritizing growth areas that offer the largest returns on revenue and margin.