Macy's said it expects 2021 to be a year for recovery and rebuilding, as it claws its way back from the losses it has suffered during the pandemic. It offered an outlook that anticipates continued obstacles from the health crisis during the spring, with momentum escalating in the back half of 2021.
Net income fell to $160 million, or 50 cents per share, from $340 million, or $1.09 per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time charges, the company earned 80 cents per share, better than the 12 cents expected by analysts. E-commerce sales were up 21% in the period. The company said digital sales accounted for 44% of net sales, while roughly a quarter of Macy's digital sales were fulfilled from its stores during the quarter.
"Given Macy's focus on clothing, if it can't make this part of its business work properly then its long term trajectory does not look promising," he said. "Some small wins in various categories were not sufficient to offset the general malaise in the rest of the business." Looking to fiscal 2021, Macy's is calling for sales to fall within a range of $19.75 billion to $20.75 billion. Analysts had been calling for annual revenue of $20.13 billion.