What to Look for in Macy’s Earnings

Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) is scheduled to report its fiscal second-quarter financial results before the markets open on Thursday. The consensus estimates call for $0.45 in earnings per share (EPS) on $5.74 billion in revenue. The retailer posted EPS $0.64 and $5.83 billion in revenue in the same period of last year.

Overall, the company saw continued weakness in consumer spending levels for apparel and related categories in the first quarter. Particularly, the sales trend relative to expectations meaningfully slowed beginning in mid-March, and first-quarter results were below the original outlook.

Headwinds also were coming from a second consecutive year of double-digit spending reductions by international visitors in major tourist markets where Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s are key destinations, as well as a slowdown in some center core categories, further intensifying the challenges associated with growing top-line sales revenue.

Macy’s has its work cut out for it going into this earnings report.

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A few analysts weighed in on Macy’s ahead of the report:

• Goldman Sachs reiterated a Neutral rating with a $34 price target.
• Deutsche Bank has a Hold rating with a $37 price target.
• Cowen reiterated a Market Perform rating.
• Stifel reiterated a Hold rating.
• Sterne Agee CRT reiterated a Neutral rating.
• Argus has a Hold rating.
• Citigroup reiterated a Hold rating.
• Credit Suisse reiterated a Buy rating.
• BMO Capital Markets reiterated a Buy rating.
• Telsey Advisory Group has a Market Perform rating with a $36 price target.

Excluding Wednesday’s move, Macy’s has underperformed the broad markets, with the stock down 1.5% year to date. Over the past 52 weeks, the story gets even worse, with the stock down nearly 50%.

Shares of Macy’s were trading up nearly 2% at $34.43 on Wednesday, with a consensus analyst price target of $38.61 and a 52-week trading range of $29.94 to $67.08.

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