Last week, the two biggest retailers in the U.S. sporting goods sector reported their third quarters and, although the numbers were not especially pretty objectively speaking, they were much better than Wall Street expected. Both stocks rallied, even though they warned that the market remains very promotional and they will need to invest even more to prepare their businesses for the future. Investors evidently concluded that the sporting goods industry was not entirely dead and that maybe two pretty well managed retailers might survive and even thrive over the long haul.

When retailers talk about investment these days, they talk about ... Log in to view full article.