The COVID-19 pandemic forced department stores to close their stores for much of the spring -- and even longer in some cases -- while weighing on traffic even after they reopened. As such, most major department store operators reported dreadful results for the first half of fiscal 2020.
That said, sales and earnings trends improved dramatically in the second quarter relative to the first quarter. This week, Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) and Macy's (NYSE: M) are set to report their results for the third quarter. Investors are eager to see if the pattern of sequential improvement continued.
In the first quarter, Kohl's rang up a substantial adjusted net loss of $495 million as revenue plunged more than 40% year over year. However, it reacted quickly to the COVID-19 pandemic, starting with the rollout of curbside pickup in early April at most of its stores. It was also able to reopen most of its stores in May as states and cities relaxed their stay-at-home orders.
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Earnings Preview: Macy's and Kohl's to Report Q3 Results