Macy’s, Inc. Reports Third Quarter 2021 Results; Narrows and Raises Full Year 2021 Guidance

Quarterly net sales and earnings exceeded expectations

Comparable sales up 37.2% on an owned basis and up 35.6% on an owned-plus-licensed basis versus 2020; up 8.9% and up 8.7%, respectively, versus 2019

Diluted EPS of $0.76 and Adjusted diluted EPS of $1.23

Repurchased $300 million of shares, repaid $1.6 billion in debt ahead of schedule and paid $46 million in dividends

Added 4.4 million new customers into Macy’s brand, a 28% increase over 2019

Announces plans to launch curated digital marketplace platform

Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M) today reported financial results for the third quarter of 2021.

“Our company delivered another strong quarter and exceeded our expectations on both top and bottom lines. The results were driven by the effective execution of the Polaris strategy and an improved economic environment. In the quarter, the Macy’s brand added 4.4 million new customers. Consumers continue to spend, and we successfully offered a wide range of expanding merchandise assortment to meet their growing demand,” said Jeff Gennette, chairman and chief executive officer of Macy’s, Inc. “Looking ahead to the fourth quarter, we remain a special place for holiday shopping, and our robust omnichannel ecosystem is showing resilience in the face of labor and supply chain challenges and enables us to meet customer shopping needs with speed and convenience.”

“We are encouraged by the momentum of our business and its strong financial health and continue to invest in positioning our company for long-term sustainable and profitable growth,” Gennette continued. “Today, we are announcing plans to launch a curated digital marketplace platform that will further fuel customer acquisition and sales growth across all of our channels.”

Additional details about the new digital marketplace platform will be provided in a dedicated press release.

Third Quarter Highlights

In addition to prior year comparisons, Macy’s, Inc. is providing comparisons to 2019 to benchmark its performance given the impact of the pandemic last year.

• Diluted earnings per share of $0.76 and Adjusted diluted earnings per share of $1.23 both exceeded expectations for the quarter.
  • This compares to a diluted loss per share of $(0.29) and an Adjusted diluted loss per share of $(0.19) in third quarter 2020.
  • This compares to diluted earnings per share of $0.01 and Adjusted diluted earnings per share of $0.07 in third quarter 2019.
  • In the third quarter 2021, Adjusted diluted earnings per share excludes the charges related to the recognition of fees associated with the early retirement of debt.

• Comparable sales up 37.2% on an owned basis and up 35.6% on an owned-plus-licensed basis versus 2020; up 8.9% and up 8.7%, respectively, versus 2019.
  • On a comparable owned-plus-licensed basis, the third quarter 2021 includes a 200-basis point benefit resulting from the shift of the Friends and Family promotional event into the third quarter from the fourth quarter as compared to 2019.

• Digital sales increased 19% versus third quarter 2020 and grew 49% versus third quarter 2019.
  • Digital penetration was 33% of net sales, a 5-percentage point expected decline from third quarter 2020, but a 10-percentage point improvement over third quarter 2019.

• Highlights of the company's nameplates include:
  • Macy’s comparable sales were up 36.4% on an owned basis and up 35.1% on an owned-plus-licensed basis compared to the third quarter of 2020, and up 9.0% and 8.4%, respectively, compared to the third quarter of 2019.
    • Approximately 4.4 million new customers shopped the Macy's brand, a 28% increase compared to third quarter 2019, with 41% of these customers coming through the digital channel in third quarter 2021.
    • Platinum, Gold and Silver customers in the Star Rewards Loyalty program continued to engage, with the average customer spend up 16% compared to the third quarter of 2019.
    • The Bronze segment of the Star Rewards Loyalty program, its youngest and most diverse loyalty tier, continued to grow with the addition of 2.3 million new members during the quarter.
    • Categories that were solid throughout the pandemic, including home, fragrances, jewelry, watches and sleepwear, continued to see strong sales performance.
    • Occasion-based categories, such as dresses, men’s tailored and luggage, continued to recover.
    • Emerging categories, such as toys and pets, showed encouraging results and the company continues to expand on those categories and related brands.
  • Bloomingdale’s comparable sales on an owned basis were up 43.4% and on an owned-plus-licensed basis were up 38.5% compared to the third quarter of 2020, and up 9.1% and 11.2%, respectively, compared to the third quarter of 2019.
    • Results were driven by strong sales of luxury handbags, fine jewelry, home, men’s shoes and contemporary apparel.
  • Bluemercury comparable sales were up 39.5% on an owned and owned-plus-licensed basis compared to the third quarter of 2020, but down 2.2% on an owned and owned-plus-licensed basis compared to the third quarter of 2019.
    • Private brands, home fragrance and treatment showed strong sales performance during the quarter.

• Gross margin for the quarter was 41.0%, up from 35.6% in third quarter 2020 and up 100 basis points from third quarter 2019.
  • Improvement as a result of merchandise margin was largely due to benefits from pricing, promotion and inventory productivity enhanced by the Polaris strategy.
  • Delivery expense as a percent of net sales increased 170 basis points from third quarter 2019, due to increased digital penetration.

• Inventory was up 19.4% from third quarter 2020 but down 15.4% from third quarter 2019.
  • Compared to 2020, the company has increased inventory to meet demand in stores and online. The company implemented several measures to mitigate supply chain disruptions and does not expect to be materially impacted during the fourth quarter 2021.

• Selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expense of $1.97 billion, a $229 million improvement from third quarter 2019.
  • SG&A expense as a percent of sales was 36.3%, an improvement of 630 basis points from third quarter 2019.
  • The quarter benefited from disciplined expense management and improved productivity resulting from the company's Polaris strategy, including the permanent cost savings realized in 2020, along with reduced labor costs due to elevated job openings in stores.

• Net credit card revenue of $213 million, up $30 million from third quarter 2019.
  • Represented 3.9% of sales, 100 basis points lower than third quarter 2020 and 40 basis points higher than third quarter 2019.
  • Improved bad debt levels driven by strong customer credit health continued to contribute to the growth of credit card revenue.

• Strong cash generation year-to-date allowed for execution of capital allocation priorities:
  • Repurchased $300 million of shares, accounting for 60% of the $500 million authorization.
  • Repaid early $294 million of debt due in January 2022 in addition to the early repayment of the previously announced $1.3 billion senior secured notes in August.
  • Paid $46 million in cash dividends to shareholders.

Revised Full-Year 2021 Guidance

The company is narrowing and raising its full-year 2021 guidance.

In the fourth quarter 2021, comparable sales on an owned-plus-licensed basis versus 2019 are expected to increase between 2% and 4%. This includes an approximately 125-basis point adverse impact due to the shift of the Friends and Family promotional event from the fourth quarter into the third quarter as compared to 2019. A full overview of the company’s guidance can be found in the third quarter 2021 earnings presentation at www.macysinc.com/investors.

Conference Call and Webcasts

A webcast of Macy's, Inc.’s call with analysts and investors to report its third quarter 2021 sales and earnings will be held today (November 18, 2021) at 8:00 a.m. ET. Macy’s, Inc.’s webcast, along with the associated presentation, is accessible to the media and general public via the company's website at www.macysinc.com/investors. Analysts and investors may call in on 1-800-458-4121, passcode 5692619. A replay of the conference call and slides can be accessed on the website or by calling 1-888-203-1112 (same passcode) about two hours after the conclusion of the call. Additional information on Macy’s, Inc., including past news releases, is available at www.macysinc.com/pressroom.

Adrian Mitchell, chief financial officer of Macy’s, Inc., will participate in a fireside chat at the Morgan Stanley Virtual Global Consumer & Retail Conference at 8:00 a.m. ET on December 2, 2021. Media and investors may access a live audio webcast of the presentation at www.macysinc.com. A replay of the webcast will also be available on the company’s website.

Important Information Regarding Financial Measures

Please see the final pages of this news release for important information regarding the calculation of the company’s non-GAAP financial measures.

About Macy’s, Inc.

Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M) is one of the nation’s premier omnichannel retailers. Headquartered in New York City, the company comprises three retail brands: Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury. With a robust e-commerce business, rich mobile experience and a national stores footprint, our customers can shop the way they live — anytime and through any channel. For more information, visit macysinc.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements in this press release that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Macy’s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this release because of a variety of factors, including the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Macy's customer demand and supply chain, as well as its consolidated results of operation, financial position and cash flows, Macy’s ability to successfully implement its Polaris strategy, including the ability to realize the anticipated benefits within the expected time frame or at all, conditions to, or changes in the timing of proposed real estate and other transactions, prevailing interest rates and non-recurring charges, the effect of potential changes to trade policies, store closings, competitive pressures from specialty stores, general merchandise stores, off-price and discount stores, manufacturers’ outlets, the Internet and catalogs and general consumer spending levels, including the impact of the availability and level of consumer debt, possible systems failures and/or security breaches, the potential for the incurrence of charges in connection with the impairment of intangible assets, including goodwill, Macy’s reliance on foreign sources of production, including risks related to the disruption of imports by labor disputes, regional or global health pandemics, and regional political and economic conditions, the effect of weather, labor shortages, the amount and timing of future dividends and share repurchases and other factors identified in documents filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including under the captions “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” in the company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 30, 2021 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended July 31, 2021. Macy’s disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

MACY’S, INC.

Important Information Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The company reports its financial results in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). However, management believes that certain non-GAAP financial measures provide users of the company's financial information with additional useful information in evaluating operating performance. Management believes that providing supplemental changes in comparable sales on an owned plus licensed basis, which includes adjusting for the impact of comparable sales of departments licensed to third parties, assists in evaluating the company's ability to generate sales growth, whether through owned businesses or departments licensed to third parties, and in evaluating the impact of changes in the manner in which certain departments are operated. Earnings (loss) before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) is a non-GAAP financial measure which the company believes provides meaningful information about its operational efficiency by excluding the impact of changes in tax law and structure, debt levels and capital investment. In addition, management believes that excluding certain items from EBITDA, net income (loss) and diluted earnings (loss) per share that are not associated with the company’s core operations and that may vary substantially in frequency and magnitude from period-to-period provides useful supplemental measures that assist in evaluating the company's ability to generate earnings and to more readily compare these metrics between past and future periods.

The company does not provide reconciliations of the forward-looking non-GAAP measures of adjusted EBITDA, diluted earnings per share, and comparable sales on an owned plus licensed basis to the most directly comparable forward-looking GAAP measures because the timing and amount of excluded items are unreasonably difficult to fully and accurately estimate. For the same reasons, the company is unable to address the probable significance of the unavailable information, which could be material to future results.

Non-GAAP financial measures should be viewed as supplementing, and not as an alternative or substitute for, the company's financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP. Certain of the items that may be excluded or included in non-GAAP financial measures may be significant items that could impact the company's financial position, results of operations or cash flows and should therefore be considered in assessing the company's actual and future financial condition and performance. Additionally, the amounts received by the company on account of sales of departments licensed to third parties are limited to commissions received on such sales. The methods used by the company to calculate its non-GAAP financial measures may differ significantly from methods used by other companies to compute similar measures. As a result, any non-GAAP financial measures presented herein may not be comparable to similar measures provided by other companies.