Macy's Inc (NYSE: M)'s stock plunged 17 percent on
Thursday and hit a new multi-year low
of $24.25. Investors and traders punished the stock after the department-store chain's earnings report contained many troubling
metrics.
Investors and Wall Street will now debate Macy's suitability as an investment, but one aspect that shouldn't be up for
discussion is the future of retail.
Taking Retail's Temperature
According to Gadfly's Shelly
Banjo, Macy's woes aren't a sign of retails future since Macy's status as a retail proxy it held years ago no longer applies.
Many years ago, Macy's was the only store where consumers could pick up a Coach Inc (NYSE: COH) handbag or Ralph Lauren Corp (NYSE: RL) jacket, but now consumers have more choices than ever.
The U.S. retail market is a $5 trillion industry, so why would anyone correlate Macy's $25 billion in annual sales as a proper
gauge of the retail industry? Also, the retail market based on overall retail sales have been steadily growing since 2008.
Yet while overall sales are growing, department stores, specialty clothing stores, electronics and appliance stores, and
office-supply stores are seeing shrinking sales. These types of stores are merely shedding market share to both online giants as
well as off-price retailers.
In the meantime, chains like Macy's are still able to hang on for dear life and for at least the time being their "day of
reckoning isn't here yet."
Related Links:
Macy's
Biggest Foe Isn't Amazon... It's Other Brick & Mortar Retailers
TJX,
Ross And Burlington Will Open The Same Number Of Stores Macy's, Sears And JC Penney Are Closing
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Image Credit: By Miosotis Jade - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, via
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