Holidays Anyone?
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| Wed, 11-11-2009 - 10:24am |
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Macy's Inc.'s (M) fiscal third-quarter loss narrowed more than expected on lower markdowns, but the department store's guidance for the holiday season failed to meet analysts' expectations.
Macy's said it expects fourth-quarter earnings of $1 a share to $1.05 a share, with same-store-sales dropping 1% to 2%, when Wall Street was projecting earnings of $1.17 a share.
The lower-than-expected guidance follows other retailers, including Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (RL) last week and Fossil Inc. (FOSL) on Tuesday, offering more robust assessments for their fourth quarters.
Macy's shares are responding to the outlook, with the stock down 4.8% to $18.50 pre-market.
Macy's guidance could prove conservative because the retailer demonstrated during the third quarter that it is going into the Christmas season with lean inventories, which could reduce the likelihood of markdowns that would hurt earnings, analysts said.
Earnings for the full year are expected to be $1.01 to $1.06 a share, up from previous guidance of 70 cents to 80 cents a share, but still below analysts' average estimate of $1.11, according to Thomson Reuters. Macy's also improved its outlook for full-year same-store sales, calling for a decline of 5.4% to 5.7%.
During the recession, department stores have posted the biggest sales declines of just about all retail categories because of their extensive exposure to discretionary purchases. Macy's, which grew to national prominence with aggressive acquisitions, has shifted its strategy to show more locally targeted products in its stores rather than a uniform look across the U.S.
Chairman and Chief Executive Terry Lundgren said in a statement Wednesday the company is confident in the locally focused structure heading into the holiday season. Of the 10 districts that performed best by same-store sales last quarter, seven were among those that first adopted the "My Macy's" local-focus program, he said. The company had an "excellent quarter" given the difficult climate, as business progressively improved each month, Lungren said.
For the period ended Oct. 31, Macy's posted a loss of $35 million, or 8 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier loss of $44 million, or 10 cents a share. The periods included restructuring charges of 5 cents and 2 cents, respectively. Analysts anticipated a 7-cent loss.
Macy's said revenue decreased 3.9% to $5.28 billion, with same-store sales down 3.6%, although they were down 4.2% excluding online sales. Online sales, which include both macys.com and bloomingdales.com, were up 21%.
What do you plan to spend on the holidays this year? More, less, same as last year?
To be honest, I'm in better financial shape now than I've been in the last 4 or 5 years. While I know others are out of work or struggling, I've found these times to be better than in years past for me. Gas isn't $4.00 a gallon, I'm not in debt, and I got a good raise early this year, so I'm doing OK.
However, that doesn't mean I'm going to go on a spending spree. I now pay cash for everything I want. No more credit cards - ever. And I'm saving every penny I can get my hands on. I have everything I could possibly need -to spend money on STUFF would just be a waste. How many clothes does one person need? Do I really need that high-def TV? No. My car runs perfectly fine; I really don't need new one. Why spend money just for the sake of spending it?
We will have Christmas and there will be gifts, but we've pretty much already planned it out. We know what we'll be getting and we'll stick close to that. I used to go all out for Christmas, but no more. It's not worth spending all that money on STUFF.


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Not just the men!
omg...that reminds me of the year my DD was born.
Fishing line. It works great and you can't see it. I use to have cats that loved to play in the tree. I learned a long time ago to "anchor" the tree.
Also, if your tree trunk doesn't fit the tree, nail a large coffee can to the trunk. A few wood planks, like a triangle, nailed to the tree trunk, helps support it.
My daughter had a tree land on her. It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.
"I set up a 'pick the winner' for ALL of the bowl games"
Sounds good to me. I was thinking about doing it for regular NFL games but didn't want o steal the Sports Board's thunder. I did notice it's nolonger done over there.
I'll do it...it's not a problem.
If you wanted to, you could set it up for the NFL Playoffs?
"Fishing line, what a good idea"
Yea, a great idea until somebody happens to walk by the tree
I don’t get gifts for many people, but I’m spending about the same (maybe slightly less).
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