By Teresa Rivas

Gas and groceries are expensive, and many consumers are feeling low. Yet Burlington Stores just keeps shining.

The off-price retailer's shares are up some 25% since Barron's recommended them late last year, dwarfing the gains made by the S&P 500 and speeding well ahead of its peers tracked by the State Street SPDR S&P Retail exchange-traded fund and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF. That strength can continue.

Last month, Burlington delivered a beat-and-raise earnings report for its fiscal first quarter, with growth across categories. While there was a bit of a bump from consumers' spending their tax refunds, it marked the 14th straight quarter of double-digit percentage earnings growth, showing that the company's success is more than a one-off.

The shares trade at 29 times next year's earnings, well below their five-year average, and slightly cheaper than peers TJX Cos. and Ross Stores. And Burlington's earnings per share are expected to jump 20% this year, followed by a nearly 17% gain next year, which make the price tag look more reasonable.

Off-price retailers have been gaining market share for years as consumers try to get the best bang for their buck in the inflation age. That should continue as inflation -- which ran at an annual pace of 4.2% in May -- continues to eat into budgets.

Burlington stock hasn't traditionally done as well as its peers' shares, as the company has struggled to match them in terms of merchandising and execution. Yet as we noted in December, that is beginning to change. The company is revamping its stores and improving its selection, and those moves are resonating with shoppers. The retailer's recently completed fiscal first quarter was the first time in nearly three years that Burlington delivered back-to-back same-store sales growth in the mid-single digits, with a rate of 6% in the latest period.

Burlington's customers aren't as well-heeled as those who shop at TJX's TJ Maxx and Home Goods brands, which could leave the stock more exposed to sales pullback in the K-shaped economy (the theory that wealthier Americans are still spending even as everyone else budgets more stringently). Nor is Burlington's stock turnaround as dramatic as that

at Ross (which   Barron's also likes ). It's understandable if some investors are happy with the gains they have made so far, and prefer other areas of the market over retail as questions about the health of consumer linger. 

However the improvements it's making, along with Americans' ongoing focus on value, should help Burlington shares keep climbing along with its off-price peers.

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June 15, 2026 01:17 ET (05:17 GMT)

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