Hot Topic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOTT)

TMFLomax (96.37) Submitted: 8/25/2008 1:55:11 PM : Start Price: $5.04 HOTT Score: -100.56

I've been writing about this company for quite a long time, but here are a few of my thoughts on this retailer.

Recent thoughts: http://www.fool.com/investing/small-cap/2008/07/16/hot-gossip-at-hot-topic.aspx

Not so recent, but one of my personal favorites: http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2007/03/16/hot-topic-gets-goth-served.aspx

I guess in a nutshell, it's one thing to be a niche retailer but you've got to not only do it well but also be authentic to your target customers. Hot Topic could have been a super cool retailer if it really was truly serving subculture, but as far as I have been able to tell it's about trend/fashion and nothing more real than that (back in my long-ago youth, that was called being a "poseur"). I've long thought maybe Hot Topic should have just been a private company and never have had any pressure to expand. This is the long story of why I have it marked as an "underperform" here. (Plus, it's never looked cheap to me by glancing at its multiples, either, so end of story.)