Big Lots

Big Lots - BIG . NYSE

This is what I thought in October 2018 when I first bought the stock...

Big Lots has over 1400 stores spread across the United States, selling a variety of goods from furniture to food and consumables to seasonal products. They specialise in closeout and discount merchandise. For the past 10 years, their strategy has been to keep their store footprint stable and recycle any excess profits they have into buying back their shares on the public market. As a result, even though sales and earnings have stayed relatively flat on an absolute basis, their per share numbers have shown healthy growth. Reasonable growth, modest debt and a stable history of past earnings, even through the last recession, together with a compelling p:e ratio of 8.4 at the current share price of around $41, encouraged me to make an investment despite the difficulties facing the wider retail sector.