NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Retailer stocks mostly rose across the board Monday with shares discounters, mid-priced department-store chains and supermarkets in the forefront.
Shares of Big Lots Inc. BIG, +0.17% took a commanding position to the to upside, rising 2.8% to $31.48.
Broadly, the S&P Retail Index RLX, +0.00% was up 4.4 points at 504.60.
Decliners were led by RadioShack Corp. RSH, -0.67% which lost 14 cents to $25.90. The troubled home-electronics retailer's shares were downgraded to underweight from equal-weight by Morgan Stanley.
Analyst Gregory Melich said although margin expansion and free cash flow improvement are likely because of the company's restructuring efforts, the retailer's wireless fundamentals and top line remain "suspect."
Melich also noted that Apple Inc.'s upcoming iPhone will be sold through Cingular and Apple stores, and not in RadioShack RSH, -0.67% stores.
Also lower, Gap Inc. GPS, -0.97% saw its shares slip 4 cents to $17.46.