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Ollie's 'smashes expectations' with holiday results, says Stephens. After Ollie's Bargain Outlet pre-announced that its holiday period sales increased 16.6%, with a comparable store sales increase of 7.1%, Stephens analyst Rick Nelson estimated that the company's full year guidance implies Q4 same-store sales growth of 6%, which he noted was well above his prior estimate of 3%. In a note partially titled "Strong Holiday Period Smashes Expectations," Nelson said he continues to see Ollie's unique experience being insulated from internet competition and keeps a $100 price target and Overweight rating on the shares.

Buy Gap, sell L Brands are Jefferies' best Consumer ideas for 2019. In the Consumer space, Jefferies analyst Randal Konik says his best ideas for 2019 are buying Gap (GPS) and selling L Brands (LB). The analyst recommends using the late 2018 selloff as an opportunity to get long consumer names for 2019. His other top Buy ideas are American Eagle (AEO), Boot Barn (BOOT), Capri Holdings (CPRI), Five Below (FIVE), Foot Locker (FL), Fox Factory (FOXF), Acushnet Holdings (GOLF), Kohl's (KSS), Manchester United (MANU), Ollie's Bargain Outlet (OLLI), Tiffany (TIF), Urban Outfitters (URBN), Under Armour (UAA) and Yeti (YETI). On L Brands, Konik continues to believe Victoria's Secret "is broken," Pink "is a fad" that's sales will get cut in half, and Bath & Body Works is at a "cyclical peak with daunting compares ahead." On the flip side, the analyst thinks Gap will be one of the top S&P 500 stocks in 2019. He recommends "aggressively" buying the shares at current levels.