Alan Rifkin Quotations

We remain very positive on the home improvement sector and Home Depot's prospects, particularly given current valuation levels. Home Depot shares are currently trading in line with the five-year historic low forward price-to-earnings ratio, based on consensus estimates.

Lowe's remains one of our favorite names. Despite concern of a softening housing market in 2006, we believe Lowe's solid results are indicative of trends in the broader home improvement industry.

Net-net, the change is expected to boost earnings on a continued operating basis.

Given the demographics of the targeted Pier 1 consumer, we believe higher gas prices could limit spending levels and further impact comparable sales.

People are increasingly concerned, given what Wal-Mart said, that higher gas prices are going to hurt the spending power of the consumer.

I think people on the street were a little surprised that we weren't given full warning. Gift cards are increasing in importance and we think this season will represent 16 percent of sales.

We are accustomed to seeing troubled companies pruning their staff and letting people go, but Best Buy is really hitting on all cylinders.

We admire Home Depot's solid execution and productivity. We continue to have a more positive view on the macroeconomic environment over the next six to 12 months.

We admire Home Depot's solid execution and productivity, ... We continue to have a more positive view on the macroeconomic environment over the next six to 12 months.

We believe that, with current sales trends still weak, the company's holiday selling season could very well be hampered,

While we believe Home Depot is one of the finest names in retailing, we continue to reiterate our cautious outlook on the shares, given the company's vulnerability to a potential slowdown in the housing environment.

With gas prices already nearing the post-summer peak from last year, there is real concern that gas prices will be significantly higher than what we saw last year.

At the end of the day, with oil touching $70 a barrel, that is not good for the consumer. When we are all paying more at the pump to fill our cars, that's less disposable spending that we all have to spend at retailers.

Despite limited console availability, we believe that Xbox 360 boosted comp growth as traffic trends benefited from the excitement generated by the new product. Enhanced TV sales were also strong during December and January, which also aided same-store sales.

AutoZone's retail market for auto parts is already quite mature. So it's really difficult to improve business in that segment.

This change basically affects the timing of when the rebates are accounted for, ... The way Best Buy will do it now is typically a more conservative approach.

At expense of margins, we believe Pier 1 continues to rely on heavy promotions to drive sales. March results seem to have improved, but we await greater signs of improvement.

If you look at the four hurricanes last year, which had combined insured losses of $23 billion, both Home Depot and Lowe's benefited by about 100 basis points on their same-store sales,

clearly a positive step in the right direction, and it showed that Circuit City store renovation and relocation strategy is moving in the right direction.

The commercial market for auto parts is still growing. This segment is still really in the early stages of its life cycle.