10 Retail Stocks Being Snapped Up By Insiders

If you're interested in the retail sector but don't know where to start, here are some ideas you may find helpful.

We ran a screen on the retail industry for stocks seeing the most significant net insider purchases over the last six months.

Interactive Chart: Press Play to compare changes in analyst ratings over the last two years for the top six stocks mentioned below. Analyst ratings sourced from Zacks Investment Research.

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We also created a price-weighted index of the stocks mentioned below, and monitored the performance of the list relative to the S&P 500 index over the last month. To access a complete analysis of this list's recent performance, click here.

These insiders stand behind their employers - do you think they'll outperform? Use this list as a starting point for your own analysis.

List sorted by net insider purchases as a percent of share float.

1. Carter's, Inc. (CRI): Designs, sources, and markets branded children's wear. Market cap of $2.38B. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 1.11M, which is 2.25% of the company's 49.41M share float. The stock is a short squeeze candidate, with a short float at 6.59% (equivalent to 5.74 days of average volume). The stock has gained 41.8% over the last year.

2. Saks Incorporated (SKS): Operates fashion retail stores in the United States. Market cap of $1.54B. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 886.72K, which is 0.87% of the company's 101.62M share float. This is a risky stock that is significantly more volatile than the overall market (beta = 2.54). The stock is a short squeeze candidate, with a short float at 28.34% (equivalent to 10.99 days of average volume). The stock has lost 16.35% over the last year.

3. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (AEO): Operates as an apparel and accessories retailer in the United States and Canada. Market cap of $2.60B. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 1.13M, which is 0.68% of the company's 166.68M share float. It's been a rough couple of days for the stock, losing 12.48% over the last week.

4. Perry Ellis International Inc. (PERY): Engages in designing, sourcing, marketing, and licensing apparel products for men and women in the United States and internationally. Market cap of $218.42M. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 35.45K, which is 0.35% of the company's 10.02M share float. This is a risky stock that is significantly more volatile than the overall market (beta = 2.14). The stock has lost 45.45% over the last year.

5. G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. (GIII): Designs, manufactures, imports, and markets a range of outerwear and sportswear apparel to retailers primarily in the United States. Market cap of $462.22M. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 20.0K, which is 0.15% of the company's 13.71M share float. This is a risky stock that is significantly more volatile than the overall market (beta = 2.48). The stock is a short squeeze candidate, with a short float at 10.71% (equivalent to 6.03 days of average volume). The stock has had a good month, gaining 23.05%.

6. WMS Industries Inc. (WMS): Engages in the design, manufacture, and distribution of games, video and mechanical reel-spinning gaming machines, and video lottery terminals (VLTS) for the legalized gaming industry worldwide. Market cap of $1.15B. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 65.90K, which is 0.12% of the company's 54.17M share float. The stock is a short squeeze candidate, with a short float at 10.33% (equivalent to 5.82 days of average volume). The stock has lost 56.47% over the last year.

7. OfficeMax Incorporated (OMX): Distributes business-to-business and retail office products. Market cap of $385.82M. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 89.30K, which is 0.11% of the company's 84.73M share float. This is a risky stock that is significantly more volatile than the overall market (beta = 2.54). The stock is a short squeeze candidate, with a short float at 16.8% (equivalent to 7.24 days of average volume). The stock has performed poorly over the last month, losing 10.58%.

8. Inergy, L.P. (NRGY): Engages in the retail marketing, sale, and distribution of propane to residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural customers in the United States. Market cap of $3.19B. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 90.80K, which is 0.09% of the company's 95.65M share float. The stock has lost 33.56% over the last year.

9. Office Depot, Inc. (ODP): Supplies office products and services. Market cap of $594.60M. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 165.0K, which is 0.06% of the company's 275.80M share float. This is a risky stock that is significantly more volatile than the overall market (beta = 3.18). The stock is a short squeeze candidate, with a short float at 10.25% (equivalent to 6.69 days of average volume). The stock has performed poorly over the last month, losing 12.03%.

10. The Talbots Inc. (TLB): Operates as a specialty retailer and direct marketer of women's apparel, accessories, and shoes in the United States and Canada. Market cap of $193.20M. Net insider shares purchased over the last six months at 32.0K, which is 0.06% of the company's 57.02M share float. The stock is a short squeeze candidate, with a short float at 19.32% (equivalent to 9.84 days of average volume). The stock has had a good month, gaining 75.64%.

*Insider data sourced from Yahoo! Finance, all other data sourced from Finviz.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.