It’s getting pricier by the day to be a JCPenney supplier.
So-called “factoring” companies that finance clothing deliveries to Penney are tightening credit terms, shortening payment windows and tacking on extra surcharges as worries about the retailer’s business mount, The Post has learned.
Commercial-lending giant CIT is approving Penney orders selectively and demanding quicker payment on accounts with the retailer, despite holding a $100 million letter of credit from Penney that the chain had tried unsuccessfully to claw back this summer, sources said.
Two apparel manufacturers told The Post that CIT had requested a 2 percent surcharge on recent Penney deliveries, up from 1 percent.
A spokesman for Penney countered Thursday that Penney’s surcharge “is not changing and has not changed.”
A spokesman for CIT said the lender doesn’t comment on individual clients.
Wells Fargo, which also has a large factoring arm, is still supporting Penney orders, although the bank has acquired a financial hedge worth $50 million in the event of a Penney bankruptcy, according to a source.
The clampdowns — which in some cases have also shortened payment windows to 30 days from 45 to 60 days — are more opportunistic than a signal of real worries about a potential bankruptcy filing this year, according to insiders.
“These [factoring companies] love what’s going on right now,” according to an industry source, noting increased speculation this week that Penney might file for Chapter 11, stoked most recently by a bearish research report by Goldman Sachs.
“They’re making a ton of money off this,” the source said. “They like people to be scared, but not too scared.”
Nevertheless, some of the new restrictions are rattling manufacturers.
New York-based Rosenthal & Rosenthal, a large factoring firm which doesn’t have a letter of credit from Penney, told suppliers Wednesday it will only insure 75 percent of orders in the event of a bankruptcy filing, down from 100 percent, sources said.
However, an insider noted that the firm, which is raising its own surcharge to 2 percent, doesn’t believe a Penney bankruptcy filing is “imminent” this year.
Other firms that are raising fees including Capital Business Credit, which is asking for a 3-percent surcharge on some deliveries, according to sources.
Early Thursday, Penney issued a statement to ease concerns about its business, saying it expects comparable sales to be positive heading into the crucial fourth quarter.
Penney shares — which plunged 15 percent Wednesday to their lowest level in nearly 13 years — were up 3.5 percent at $10.47 in midday trading on Thursday.
“JCPenney’s vendors are very supportive,” the company said in the statement. “We are paying them on time and have not heard any issues with regard to factors.”
Nevertheless, sources said Penney recently delayed payments to some suppliers, blaming a software glitch.
Penney CEO Mike Ullman met Wednesday with investors in New York, sounding upbeat notes on the progress of Penney’s business and insisting that the retailer has no plans to shore up its liquidity this fall by selling new debt or equity.
Still, insiders say Penney tried and failed this month to raise between $500 million and $1 billion in fresh debt backed by assets including real estate.
“They’ve had doors slammed in their face all over town,” a source said.