It appears that Michael McCaul, an influential member of the US's Republican party, made some good investment decisions recently.

Last month, the Texan Representative disclosed that he invested in Burlington Stores (BURL:US). This wasn’t a big surprise given that McCaul actively traded Burlington shares in 2021 when he was selling his stake throughout the year to take advantage of a big rally in the stock. 

While Congressman McCaul likely made very solid profits by selling Burlington stock above $300 per share, he also patiently waited for the pullback to gain exposure to the national off-price department store retailer. A lot of other retail stocks share BURL's sentiment in the wake of holiday sales, starting with the ongoing Black Friday sales. Macy's Inc (M:US) is up by 14.45% in the past five days, with a 6.22% in the same time period for Home Depot Inc (HD:US)

On September 14, when the BURL stock price closed at $137.73 a share, McCaul invested twice between $15,000 - $50,000. Previously, Burlington shares fell 70% from their peak to hit a two-and-a-half-year low in September.

Yesterday, Burlington stock closed over 20% higher after the latest earnings report showed the company has managed to improve its margins. Moreover, the management said trends at the off-price retailer have improved from mid-October through November, sending shares sharply higher. As a result, Burlington stock price closed at nearly $190 per share, marking a new six-month high. BURL shares now trade over 35% higher from the day when Mr. McCaul invested in the stock again.

Congressman McCaul is one of the most closely followed Congress members when it comes to stock market trades. He is a Republican Leader of the Foreign Affairs Committee and a member of the House Committee on Homeland Security.

Rep. McCaul reported almost 6,500 trades in the last three years, involving hundreds of millions of dollars.