Macy's Widens 3Q Profit, Raises Outlook Despite Sandy

Helped by an uptick in demand, Macy's (NYSE:M) revealed better-than-expected third-quarter earnings on Wednesday and said it anticipates strong current-quarter growth despite the negative impact of Hurricane Sandy.

As the retailer looks toward the key holiday shopping season, Macy’s said it has confidence in its ability to grow sales and earnings in the current quarter despite the negative impact of Hurricane Sandy.

Macy’s raised its fiscal 2012 earnings forecast, now looking for full-year EPS of in the range of $3.35 to $3.40, up from an earlier view provided in August of $3.30 to $3.35 a share. The consensus is calling for earnings of $3.40.

In the fourth quarter, it sees EPS of $1.94 to $1.99, below the Street's $2.04 a share.

The department-store chain, with flagship stores in both Cincinnati and New York, said net income last quarter climbed to $145 million, or 36 cents a share, from a year-earlier profit of $139 million, or 32 cents.

The results topped average analyst estimates of 29 cents in a Thomson Reuters poll.

Revenue for the three months ended Oct. 27 climbed 3.8% to $6.08 billion from $5.85 billion a year ago, matching the Street’s view.

Same-store sales, a key growth metric for retailers that measures sales at stores open longer than a year, increased by 3.7%, with online sales growing 40.4% from last year.

“We were pleased to deliver sales and earnings growth for the 11th consecutive quarter,” Macy’s CEO Terry Lundgren said in a statement.