Business

Macy’s: Christmas sales will be hot this year

Christmas will happen this year, after all — for Macy’s, at least.

The Big Apple-based department store delivered better-than-expected quarterly results Wednesday and forecast strong holiday sales, soothing lingering worries that the crucial fourth quarter will be a flop for retailers.

Macy’s sales and profits blew past Wall Street’s expectations, boosting its shares 9.4 percent and lifting retail stocks across the board.

Third-quarter sales were particularly strong in October — a sign of momentum heading into the holiday rush, said CEO Terry Lundgren.

Battered shares of rivals JCPenney and Sears Holdings each rose 3.6 percent as Wall Street bet that shoppers have begun to hit the malls again after a slow summer.

Still, strong results at Macy’s don’t necessarily signal a tide that’s lifting all boats, according to industry watchers.

Analysts have lately warned that this holiday season could be brutally competitive for stores as shoppers remain skittish about the direction of the economy.

Lundgren said Macy’s racked up a 31-percent profit increase “despite the tepid economic climate.” The company disclosed that its quarterly gross margin declined slightly on discounts used to lure customers.

“We felt we had to intensify our marketing and enhance our value offering to drive the business in the current economic environment,” Macy’s finance chief Karen Hoguet said in an earnings call.

Macy’s profit rose to $177 million as sales gained 3.3 percent to $6.28 billion. Macy’s kept its full-year earnings outlook after cutting it in August.

Separately Wednesday, shares of big department-store supplier Perry Ellis plummeted 23 percent to two-year lows after the company cut its outlook for the year amid disappointing third-quarter results.