Gabriella Santaniello

Most retailers are feeling quite merry after the start of the holiday shopping season drew a record number of visitors to their websites and stores. Shares of most major retailers soared in Monday trading, amid a broad market rally. The National Retail Federation estimates a record 226 million shoppers went to stores and websites during the four-day holiday weekend that started on Thanksgiving Day, up from 212 million last year. Each of them spent more this year too, shelling out $398.62 over the weekend, on average, compared with $365.34 a year ago. "Black Friday did not disappoint," Wedbush analyst