Dicks, PVH and Guess lead analysts' talk

With market's sights posed on Inditex Full Year results for 2012,

to be reported on Wednesday, apparel stocks were positively represented by Dick's Sporting Goods and Guess, both seeing their respective stock ratings re-affirmed.

Dick's Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) started the week in good spirits as their stock was upgraded by analysts at Goldman Sachs from a ‘buy’ rating to a ‘conviction-buy’ rating. They now have a 53 dollars price target on the stock, down previously from 57 dollars. Analysts at BMO Capital Markets also bettered their views on the stock, upgrading it from ‘market perform’ to ‘outperform’. Their current price target is 57 dollars.

Dick's Sporting Goods Inc. traded up Tuesday after Merrill Lynch - which describes Dick's as the best-positioned sporting goods retailer in the U.S. - says it sees an upside to the company's same-store sales guidance for 2014, reported 'The Wall Street Journal'.

On the contrary, Phillips-Van Heusen (NYSE: PVH) was not favoured rating-wise this week, with its stock downgraded by analysts at Piper Jaffray from an ‘overweight’ rating to a ‘neutral’ rating. They now have a 127 dollars price target on the stock, up from their previous 124 dollars.

Meanwhile, analysts at Trefis remain expectant with regards to Guess (NYSE:GES) which is expected to release its Q4 fiscal 2013 earnings soon. “The European business, which is the most important segment for the retailer, is likely to remain under pressure due to a weak economic environment. However, some specific markets have performed well and we’ll keep an eye out for them in this quarter. The retailer’s North American results have improved over the last three quarters, but the weak holiday season is likely to limit the recovery. The most encouraging trend for Guess is the rapid growth in its Asian business which is likely to continue,” Trefis noted in a note on Tuesday.