As the craze of earnings season draws to a close, here's a look back at some of the most exciting (and some less so) results from Q4. Today, we are looking at large-format grocery & general merchandise retailer stocks, starting with Target (NYSE:TGT).

Big-box retailers operate large stores that sell groceries and general merchandise at highly competitive prices. Because of their scale and resulting purchasing power, these big-box retailers–with annual sales in the tens to hundreds of billions of dollars–are able to get attractive volume discounts and sell at often the lowest prices. While e-commerce is a threat, these retailers have been able to weather the storm by either providing a unique in-store shopping experience or by reinvesting their hefty profits into omnichannel investments.

The 4 large-format grocery & general merchandise retailer stocks we track reported a solid Q4; on average, revenues were in line with analyst consensus estimates. Stocks, especially growth stocks where cash flows further in the future are more important to the story, had a good end of 2023. The beginning of 2024 saw mixed inflation data, however, leading to more volatile stock performance, and large-format grocery & general merchandise retailer stocks have held roughly steady amidst all this, with share prices up 3% on average since the previous earnings results.

Target (NYSE:TGT)

With a higher focus on style and aesthetics compared to other large general merchandise retailers, Target (NYSE:TGT) serves the suburban consumer who is looking for a wide range of products under one roof.

Target reported revenues of $31.92 billion, up 1.7% year on year, in line with analyst expectations. It was a decent quarter for the company, with an impressive beat of analysts' gross margin estimates but underwhelming earnings guidance for the next quarter.

"Our team's efforts changed the momentum of our business, further improving our sales and traffic trends in the fourth quarter while driving profitability well ahead of expectations," said Brian Cornell, chairman and chief executive officer of Target Corporation.

Target delivered the slowest revenue growth of the whole group. The stock is up 9.9% since the results and currently trades at $165.29.

Is now the time to buy Target? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.

Best Q4: Walmart (NYSE:WMT)

Known for its large-format Supercenters, Walmart (NYSE:WMT) is a retail pioneer that serves a budget-conscious consumer who is looking for a wide range of products under one roof.

Walmart reported revenues of $173.4 billion, up 5.7% year on year, outperforming analyst expectations by 2.4%. It was an impressive quarter for the company, with revenue, gross margin, and EPS exceeding Wall Street's expectations. That performance was driven by beats in its U.S. and International Walmart operations. On the other hand, Walmart's Sam's Club division lagged Wall Street's projections, and its earnings forecast for the full year 2024 missed analysts' expectations.

Walmart scored the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The stock is up 5.3% since the results and currently trades at $59.8.

Is now the time to buy Walmart? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.

BJ's (NYSE:BJ)

Appealing to the budget-conscious individual shopping for a household, BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) is a membership-only retail chain that sells groceries, appliances, electronics, and household items, often in bulk quantities.

BJ's reported revenues of $5.36 billion, up 8.7% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 0.7%. It was a weaker quarter for the company, with underwhelming earnings guidance for the full year and a miss of analysts' gross margin estimates.

BJ's achieved the fastest revenue growth in the group. The stock is up 5.4% since the results and currently trades at $76.2.

Read our full analysis of BJ's's results here.

Costco (NASDAQ:COST)

Designed to be a one-stop shop for the suburban consumer, Costco (NASDAQ:COST) is a membership-only retail chain that sells groceries, apparel, toys, and household items, often in bulk quantities.

Costco reported revenues of $58.44 billion, up 5.7% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 1.2%. It was a solid quarter for the company, with an impressive beat of analysts' gross margin estimates and a narrow beat of analysts' earnings estimates.

Costco had the weakest performance against analyst estimates among its peers. The stock is down 8.8% since the results and currently trades at $716.36.

Read our full, actionable report on Costco here, it's free.

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