Publix is struggling against competition (vacation, supermarkets, place)

[sinatras]

Originally Posted by EngGuy

I read it. Disagree with a statement that a quarter makes a trend.

Also, other supermarkets in the conversation

Central Market - 9

Whole Foods - 431

Wegmans - 92

You didn't read it. It's not just a quarter. It's an analysis of comparable sales and other metrics over the past 10 years (culminating in a dismal first quarter 2017) coupled with shopper trends coupled with competitive pressures. It's fine that you disagree. Plenty of others do as well. Plenty of others also agree.

See you right back here in August when Publix reports its second fiscal quarter results, which I expect will also be bad.

[Swimmom32]

Originally Posted by sinatras

Great news for Publix and Wegmans, tied for first place!

I am so going to miss my wegmans

[sware2cod]

I am thankful that I don't have to grow my own produce and keep chickens and cows and pigs for food, like people in the US did 150 years ago.

[clearlevel]

I just went to Walmart and saw a whole section of just Prego "Organic" tomato sauce that said "farmer's market" on it. All organic. Unbelievable. The same washed out, pastel-colored marketing tool that they use in Trader Joe's and Lucky's. The same organic scam of selling regular tomato sauce at pulled-up prices. The U.S. is actually quite flexible as to what constitutes as organic, so most of these products are virtually the same as their cheaper counterparts anyway. It's like saying bottled water is that much better than tap water. It really isn't.

The organic label is just an excuse to make more money off vegetables and fruits. It's like the dieting craze. It's just like any of these other gimmicks that are designed to make you pay more for something, simply because of the label.

You're acting as if Publix and Walmart don't have access to the same farmers that these other specialty stores do. It's the same produce. It's the same thing. They just use a different marketing scheme. So, saying that a banana from Trader Joe's is better than Publix is ridiculous. It's the same Cavendish plant that has been cloned multiple times and is grown all around the world.

[Carolina Knight]

Is Publix struggling against competition? Despite a rough first quarter in 2017, common among other grocery retailers, Publix is healthy opening additional stores, entering new markets, and improving existing stores through replacement stores and rebuilds.

Publix is doing better than Southeastern Grocers. Southeastern Grocers is closing at least 20 Winn-Dixie, BI-LO, and Harvey's Supermarket stores. Four Winn-Dixie stores in Florida are closing. Many more stores have initiated the process of closing by closing grocery, meat, produce, and pharmacy departments.

[Helenas]

Originally Posted by sinatras

If expansion plans and new stores indicate financial health, then by all means Whole Foods must be thriving! Whole Foods is currently planning to open at least 10 new stores and has a new cheaper "365" concept in the works all over the USA.

Whole Foods is in fact a retailer in trouble.

UNDERSTATEMENT. Whole Foods has cancelled lots of expansion plans. That news has been all OVER the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, etc for weeks now.


In fact there is another front page article again in this morning's WSJ describing some insistence by big institutional investors to force a SALE of Whole Foods Market to a group who truly understands the "grocery business" !

[Helenas]

Originally Posted by sinatras

You didn't read it. It's not just a quarter. It's an analysis of comparable sales and other metrics over the past 10 years (culminating in a dismal first quarter 2017) coupled with shopper trends coupled with competitive pressures. It's fine that you disagree. Plenty of others do as well. Plenty of others also agree.

See you right back here in August when Publix reports its second fiscal quarter results, which I expect will also be bad.

Clearly you're not completely on top of most, broader "retail markets" at all. Three of the most heavily shorted retial stocks are JC Penney, Nordstrom, and Kohls Corp. They along with Macy's are set to report quarterly results THIS week. Informed analysts expect Macy's and Kohl''s to report first quarter earnigs per share revenue and same-store sales down from a year ago. JC Penney's results aren't expected to be much better either. All THREE are in the process of closing or shrinking stores. This sector of the retail business is not totally dissimilar to the happenings in the grocery business, witness the deep problems of Whole Foods Market, Winn-Dixie and others. Also, please know that Walmart has curtailed many expansion plans with their neighborhood "markets" as well.


Lots of retailers might be reporting "bad" fiscal quarter results, friend.

[sinatras]

Originally Posted by Helenas

UNDERSTATEMENT. Whole Foods has cancelled lots of expansion plans. That news has been all OVER the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, etc for weeks now.


In fact there is another front page article again in this morning's WSJ describing some insistence by big institutional investors to force a SALE of Whole Foods Market to a group who truly understands the "grocery business" !

Whole Foods "currently has 93 stores in development".

Whole Foods Market, Inc. - Whole Foods Market Reports First Quarter Results

Here's one that just opened a few weeks ago.

365 by Whole Foods Market opens in Cedar Park on Wednesday | KEYE

Here's another:

Whole Foods opens for first time in Prince George's Co. | WTOP

This is one is opening in couple weeks:

Whole Foods to open May 24 in Woodbury's CityPlace | Woodbury Bulletin

Many more stores are opening this year.

Expansion plans (like Publix's) are indicative of nothing.

[sinatras]

Originally Posted by Helenas

[/b]



Clearly you're not completely on top of most, broader "retail markets" at all. Three of the most heavily shorted retial stocks are JC Penney, Nordstrom, and Kohls Corp. They along with Macy's are set to report quarterly results THIS week. Informed analysts expect Macy's and Kohl''s to report first quarter earnigs per share revenue and same-store sales down from a year ago. JC Penney's results aren't expected to be much better either. All THREE are in the process of closing or shrinking stores. This sector of the retail business is not totally dissimilar to the happenings in the grocery business, witness the deep problems of Whole Foods Market, Winn-Dixie and others. Also, please know that Walmart has curtailed many expansion plans with their neighborhood "markets" as well.


Lots of retailers might be reporting "bad" fiscal quarter results, friend.

The department store business and the grocery business are completely different, with different pressures.

Walmart is currently focused on e-commerce expansion.

[Helenas]

Expansion plans in the "specialty foods business" is also not congruent with expansion in the grocery/supermarket business.


Expansion can be an indicator of real margin and profitability, and expansion can be an indicator of desperation, poor management, and chasing a pipe dream or "chasing a competitor". Expansion can also be a result of filling a void (perceived or real). A Whole Foods expansion was EGO-driven by the lousy CEO. Selling "organic" foodstuffs is not "the grocery/supermarket" business.


No one here is suggesting that the grocery store business is necessarily akin to the department store business model.


Whole Foods is not a savvy "grocer" or retailer at all. JCP and Sears aren't savvy retailers at all. PUBLIX SUPERMARKETS is a pretty savvy "grocer" AND retailer. That should be obvious even to any casual observer, not just any street analyst.PUBLIX SUPERMARKETS is head and shoulders above most grocers here in Florida and most of the SE. Period. Full stop.