According to Zhitong Finance APP, Nordstrom Inc. (JWN.US) released its third-quarter financial report after the market closed on November 26, Eastern Time. The data shows that the company’s Q3 revenue was $3.347 billion, which was in line with general market expectations, and diluted earnings per share were $0.27, surpassing general market forecasts. Moreover, due to better-than-expected quarterly growth from the company's discount and flagship stores, the company raised the lower limit of its annual sales guidance, which may encourage the board of directors to urge the founding family to propose a better privatization quote.

The Seattle-based department store chain expects its annual sales, including credit card income, to be flat to up 1% compared to last year. This is a narrowing of the previous expectations, which forecasted revenues to fluctuate around one percentage point of the previous year's results. The upper limit of this outlook is still slightly below Wall Street expectations. According to the average analyst expectations surveyed by Bloomberg, Wall Street anticipates that the company's revenue for the current fiscal year will grow by 1.2%.

Nevertheless, the more optimistic annual outlook sharply contrasts with the poor performance reported by some other retailers in recent weeks. Retailers indicate that consumer conditions are weak amidst high prices. The upward adjustment of the annual guidance may also reinforce some commentary from Wall Street, stating that the $23 per share price proposal for privatizing the company is too low.

In the third quarter, revenue increased by 4.6% year-on-year, while the company's comparable sales grew by 4.0%. Gross merchandise value (GMV) rose by 5.3%. Compared to 2023, the timing of the company’s anniversary sales events has changed, shifting the week-long events from the third quarter to the second quarter, negatively impacting revenue by about 100 basis points.

Among them, Nordstrom's flagship department store (Nordstrom banner) and its discount stores (Nordstrom Rack) performed slightly better than expected. Revenue from flagship department stores increased by 1.3% year-on-year, and comparable sales grew by 4.0%. Revenue at discount stores Rack grew by 10.6%, and comparable sales increased by 3.9%. In addition, the retailer opened 23 discount stores this fiscal year to capture greater demand for commodities from shoppers tired of inflation.

The company's president, Peter Nordstrom, stated in a press release, "We feel well-prepared to achieve success in the holiday sales season."

On Tuesday evening, nordstrom's stock price experienced fluctuations in New York. This year, the stock has risen by 33%, outperforming the S&P Midcap 400 index.

In September of this year, the nordstrom family and major shareholder El Puerto de Liverpool SAB, a Mexican department store operator, proposed a $3.8 billion acquisition offer to purchase the shares of nordstrom that the group does not yet own. At that time, the nordstrom family and Liverpool stated they jointly owned 43% of the shares.