Macy's Sales Beat Expectations But Warns of Tough Year Ahead

The famous department store Macy's just shared some mixed news about its business – things are getting better, but the company is still worried about the future.

What Happened: Macy's reported better sales than experts expected during the holiday shopping season. The company made $7.64 billion in sales (money from selling products) during the last three months, which was slightly more than the $7.62 billion that Wall Street analysts (financial experts who predict company performance) had guessed.

The company also made more profit per share (the amount of money earned divided by the number of company shares) than expected – $1.67 versus $1.53 predicted.

The Good News: • For the first time in three years, Macy's sales grew compared to last year • All three of its store brands (Macy's, Bloomingdale's, and Bluemercury) saw growth • Shoppers are buying trendy clothes and newer brands • The company's stock price jumped 5% after the news

The Concerns: Despite the positive results, Macy's CEO Tony Spring warned that 2026 will be challenging. The company expects: • Total sales to drop to between $21.4-$21.65 billion (down from $21.8 billion this year) • Profits per share to fall to $1.90-$2.10 (down from $2.15)

Spring explained that many unknowns make it hard to predict the future, including: • Gas prices (affecting how much people can spend on shopping) • Tariffs (taxes on imported goods that make products more expensive) • Global conflicts that could affect the economy • Whether shoppers will keep spending money

Macy's is in the middle of a three-year plan to improve its business, which includes closing about 150 underperforming stores and focusing on making the remaining stores better. While progress is being made, the company is being cautious about promising too much for the year ahead.

This is an AI-generated summary. Read the original article at: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/18/macys-m-q4-2025-earnings-.html