Macy’s (M) Q4 2023 earnings

Macy’s on Tuesday said sales fell nearly 2% in the holiday quarter, as the 166-year-old department store operator unveiled its strategy to get back to growth. 

Here’s what Macy’s reported for the fourth quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:

• Earnings per share: $2.45 adjusted vs. $1.96 expected
• Revenue: $8.12 billion vs. $8.15 billion expected

Macy’s — which includes its namesake banner, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury — said it expects sales to remain stagnant. It projected net sales of between $22.2 billion and $22.9 billion for this fiscal year, down from $23.09 billion in 2023. It anticipates comparable sales, which take out the impact of store openings and closures, will range from a decline of about 1.5% to a gain of 1.5% compared with the year-ago period on an owned-plus-licensed basis and including third-party marketplace sales.

Yet the company’s new CEO, Tony Spring, laid out a brighter outlook for the following fiscal year and how Macy’s plans to get there. Spring is the former CEO of Macy’s higher-end department store Bloomingdale’s. He took the helm Feb. 4, weeks after Macy’s announced layoffs and as it faced pressure from activist investors.

In an interview with CNBC, he said the company is taking a clear-eyed look at its business — particularly its struggling namesake stores.

“Yes, there are headwinds, certainly on discretionary categories and the middle-income consumer, but we take responsibility for what we control,” he said. “Let’s put better products into our stores. Let’s make sure it’s merchandised appropriately at a decent value. And then we have more opportunity for conversion and more [market] share.”

Macy’s shares closed more than 3% higher Tuesday.

As part of the retailer’s push to woo shoppers and restore investor…