Retailers have a lot to smile this holiday shopping season.

Consumer sentiment is up, gas prices are down and unemployment has fallen. All of that means many Americans have more cash to spend this year.

Nielsen estimates Americans will increase their spending by 2% this year -- not stellar, but it's an improvement in the right direction.

These four retail stocks are at the top of their game. They are up this year and have the highest percentage of buy ratings among retail stocks with market valuations of at least $5 billion, according to FactSet.

NEXT