Department stores operator Macy's, Inc. (M) is scheduled to announce its third-quarter results before the market opens Wednesday. On average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect a loss of $0.07 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.
Macy's, founded in 1820 and based in Cincinnati, Ohio with an additional office in New York, operates approximately 840 retail stores in 45 States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico under the names Macy's and Bloomingdale's.
For the year-ago third quarter, the company had reported a loss of $0.08 per share on sales of $5.49 billion.
Department store chains have been badly hurt by the market recession and they posted mixed same-store results for the month of October as consumers continued to exercise restraint amid job losses and an unemployment rate that is close to 10%. October is not a typically strong sales period for retailers being a transitional month between the two largest selling seasons of the year: back-to-school and Christmas. U.S. retailers use the month to clear out fall merchandise and make room for holiday floor sets.
Macy's reported a 0.8% decline in same-stores and a 1.3% decline in total sales for the month of October. The company's total sales declined to $1.69 billion for the four weeks ended on October 3, 2009, from $1.71 billion reported in the same period last year. Online sales at macys.com and bloomingdales.com combined were up 34.6% in the month.
The results were, however, an improvement from September, when Macy's reported a 2.3% decline in same-store sales and a 2.4% downturn in total sales. The company's August same store sales were down 8.1% while total sales declined 8.5% to $1.543 billion.
For the third quarter of 2009, Macy's same stores were down 3.6%. Total sales declined 3.9% for the quarter to $5.28 billion from $5.49 billion a year ago. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $5.24 billion for the quarter.
The company's online sales increased 21.1% in the third quarter and positively affected the company's same-store sales by 0.6 percentage points.
For the year-to-date period, the company's same store sales were down 7.5%. Total sales declined 7.8% to $15.64 billion from $16.96 billion last year. Online sales increased 15.6% in the period and positively impacted same-store sales.
For the second quarter, Macy's reported a sharp decline in its profit, hurt by higher one-time charges, lower sales and same store sales. Net income fell to $7 million or $0.02 per share from $73 million or $0.17 per share last year. Sales were down 9.7% to $5.16 billion from $5.72 billion in the prior-year quarter. On a same-store basis, sales were down 9.5%. On a combined basis, online sales of macys.com and bloomingdales.com were up 9.4% in the second quarter.
While announcing the second-quarter results, the company has lifted its fiscal 2009 adjusted earnings forecast significantly, and narrowed the range of anticipated drop in same store sales. The company expects fiscal 2009 earnings per share between $0.70 and $0.80, excluding restructuring-related costs, compared with $0.40 and $0.55 projected previously. Analysts currently expect the company to earn $0.79 per share for the year.
Among others in the sector, Saks Inc. (SKS) is slated to announce its third-quarter earnings on November 17. Analysts are of the view that the company will report a loss of $0.12 per share in the quarter.
Saks' comparable store sales for October increased 0.7%, while owned sales increased 1.8% to $219.8 million from $216.0 million a year ago. For September, the company had reported an 11.6% decrease in comparable store sales and a 10.2% decline in owned sales.
Saks also reported a 10.1% decline in its comparable-store sale for the third quarter of 2009. Owned sales for the quarter were $622.7 million, down 8.7% from $682.0 million last year. Analysts expected the company to report revenues of $623.88 million for the quarter.
M closed Tuesday's trading at $19.43, down $0.05, on a volume of 13.07 million shares.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.