Posted on 05/07/2013 4:13:39 PM PDT by South40
J.C. Penney Co. (JCP -3.07%) forecast a sharper-than-expected decline in fiscal first-quarter sales, citing the effect of former Chief Executive Ron Johnson's strategies to turn around the struggling department-store operator.
For the quarter ended Saturday, the company said it expects to post sales of roughly $2.64 billion, a 16% drop from the prior year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect sales of $2.74 billion, or a 13% decline.
Same-store sales were estimated to be down 16.6%, after falling 18.9% a year earlier.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
And the trajectory is set, even have his leaving.
Most people I know don't trust this store anymore. I don't.
They have a LONG WAY to go if they EVER want their customer base back. Ignoring Ellen and all that crap simply is not enough, anymore.
Maybe they should double-down on gay activism.
I am so pleased to see this company go down.
Not so fast South40.....
WJS Marketwatch....updated
....Investors breathe a sigh of relief over J.C. Penney....
May 7, 2013, 5:56 PM
As long as theres no really dreadful news, investors seem to be willing to go easy on J.C. Penney Co. JCP+1.83%.
The retailer reported after the market closed Tuesday that its preliminary fiscal first-quarter sales fell 16% to $2.64 billion. That missed the $2.74 billion consensus estimate posted by FactSet. Comparable sales, meanwhile, dropped 16.6%, also worse than the 11% drop of analysts surveyed by Retail Metrics.
Nevertheless, its comforting the sales drop was less than the 25% decline last year.
Also giving investors some solace, the company said it expects cash and cash equivalents at the end of the first quarter (May 4) to be about $821 million.
After ending last year with $930 million in cash and recently tapping $850 million from its revolving credit line, analysts said Penney may have burned less than $1 billion in cash in the first quarter, better than the $1.3 billion burn rate some feared.
Theyve got enough cash just to make through the summer, when there are peak cash needs in July and August, said Morningstar analyst Paul Swinand in an interview. He said Goldman Sachs $1.75 billion in financing also provided a welcome cushion to its cash coffers.
Swinand rates the stock a buy, keeping him among a small group of analysts betting on a turnaround at the struggling chain.
Penney shares rose 2% on the news.
The company blamed the sales decline partly on the construction of its home departments in 505 stores and on its earlier pricing and marketing strategies, which it said are being changed under returning Chief Executive Mike Ullman. Penney said it issued the preliminary results because of the Goldman Sachs loan. Final results will be released on May 16.
I guess Ellen and that “love fest” with the gays didn’t work out to well.....
Penney’s used to be a family-store. They decided to cater to homosexuals. They didn’t get their business anyway, and now they have lost ours. How much did the CEO who caused this fiasco walk out with laughing all the way to the bank?
Some will never come back...those who don't are unwilling to wait until Ullman can get out the contracts with the likes of Degenerous etc.
The catalog is no more as flyer's once more are being sent out...and coupons as well.
It's only been three weeks or so since uulman took over.....he's accomplished a great deal in short order already.
St. John's Bay is back into the stores as of this week...and others will also be returning that were good sellers.
I think it's only fair to give him some time to turn this ship around...and I believe he will from all I'm seeing at floor level.
Employee moral was horrible under Johnson....now excited to have things begin to be normal again...slowly but hopefully surely.
Give Ullman time...Ellen will be history once they determine how to get out of the contract.
I work there...it still will be a family store once Ullman can tackle all he has to tackle to turn it around...it took Johnson 18 months to hurt this company...and bring in his liberal mindset...it’s going to take a little time to root that out.
I’m certain Ellen has a contract, which they will determine how to get out of that hopefully soon.
BTW HE didn’t just walk out...he was fired! And he knew from the get go he couldn’t loose even if fired.
Not uncommon these CEO’s walk out ok...but Johnson lost a whole heap in stocks etc.
And now that Soros is into JC Penney, I’m ALL the way out.
The gay community is not the 90% they said it was?
Oh well. bye bye JC Penny.
I went into my local Pennys looking for Easy Spirit shoes, which I had always bought there. I looked around the department and didn't see the brand anywhere. A young woman asked if she could help me and I told her what I was looking for. "Oh", she said, "we don't carry that brand." I said, "you used to." She sighed and turned around and under her breath I heard her mutter, yeah, we used to.
She seemed so disspirited.
“Business sucks but we are still FABULOUS”!
LLS
I work there...it still will be a family store once Ullman can tackle all he has to tackle to turn it around...
I hope you are right that it turns around. My husband only buys his underwear (Stafford) from Penney’s. (Sorta like rainman)
All these things Johnson changed will be attended to in time....Ullman’s been just three weeks at the Helm and accomplished what Johnson could not...he's shored up the business...established contacts necessary with those that matter to do that...is handling vendors etc...and has done much in this short time already....and yesterday the entire company just completed their first inventory count since Christmas...which Johnson would not do.
Employees are working like mad to satay up with these changes now...and this on skeleton crews for the most part....that too will change once theirs a complete "picture" of just where the plans will go. All construction stops once the home areas are completed. I am hopeful things will turn around and we won't be seeing the likes of Ellen and others like her...if that continues, which I understand won't be, but if it does...I'll be looking elsewhere for work.
The key word is SLOWLY. Once they’re out of cash, it’s game over. They do need to take some POSITIVE STEPS now...or nothing matters.
So yes, it's been very hard on employees...but give it some time...as I said this week St. John's Bay is back in our store in full...and others will follow that were once popular to the base customers.
It's going to take time...but I am confident the Penny's we all knew will again be back...perhaps with a face lift which nobody can argue it didn't need, but the items hopefully will once again satisfy those who have shopped there.
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