When Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) released its fiscal second-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Wednesday, the company said that it had $0.59 in earnings per share (EPS) and $5.57 billion in revenue. The consensus estimates had called for $0.51 in EPS and revenue of $5.55 billion. The same period of last year reportedly had EPS of $0.37 on $5.55 billion in revenue.
During the latest quarter, the company reported that comparable sales were flat on a year-over-year basis. On an owned plus licensed basis, comparable sales were up 0.5% for the second quarter. Investors were none too pleased.
On the books, Macy’s cash and cash equivalents totaled $1.07 billion at the end of the quarter, up from $783 million in the same period of last year.
Looking ahead to the fiscal full year, the company expects to see EPS in the range of $3.95 to $4.15 and total sales growth of flat to up 0.7%. Consensus estimates are $3.87 in EPS and $24.9 billion in revenue for the year.
Jeff Gennette, Macy’s board chair and chief executive, commented:
Macy’s, Inc. delivered strong performance in the first half of the year, and we are pleased to report our third consecutive quarter of comparable sales growth. Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury all performed well. It is encouraging to see the continued strengthening of our brick & mortar business where we saw trend improvements across the portfolio, led by our Growth50 stores. The combination of healthy stores, robust e-commerce and a great mobile experience is Macy’s recipe for success. We are focused on improving our customer journey every step of the way because we know that our customers expect a great experience whenever and wherever they engage with our brands. We also continue to be disciplined with inventory management, which allows us to give our customers more fashion and freshness, while increasing sales and improving gross margin.
Shares of Macy’s were last seen down about 14% at $36.02, with a consensus analyst price target of $35.46 and a 52-week range of $17.41 to $41.99.
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