Nordstrom's Sales Miss Estimates, Shares Tumble

SEATTLE, United States — Department store operator Nordstrom on Thursday reported lower than expected quarterly, full price, comparable store sales, as fewer people visited its stores and bought items at full price, sending its shares down 11 percent.

Nordstrom, like other brick and mortar retailers, has struggled to quickly react to changing consumer habits where more shoppers prefer to shop at fast fashion brands and online rather than visiting malls.

To ward off attempts by online retailers to capture its shoppers, the 117-year old retailer has invested in its website, apps and loyalty program over the past few years.

As a result, online sales rose by 20 percent in the third quarter and accounted for 30 percent of the company's net sales.

The company raised its full year sales forecast to a range of $15.5 to $15.6 billion, from $15.4 to $15.5 billion.

Comparable sales at the full price business segment increased 0.4 percent in the quarter, below analysts' estimate of a 1.74 percent rise, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

The Seattle-based company's net income fell to $67 million, or 39 cents per share, from $114 million, or 67 cents, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the company earned 67 cents per share, while total revenue rose 3.3 percent to $3.75 billion.

Analysts on average had expected Nordstrom to earn 66 cents per share on revenue of $3.69 billion.

By Soundarya J in Bengaluru; editor: Maju Samuel.