Macy's beat on the second quarter and raised its outlook, and the shares fell about 3% on the day.
The usual reading of a beat-and-raise is that the stock goes up. Emily Cohn's explanation is that expectations have moved: the company is now held to a standard set by its own strong third quarter last year, and is guiding conservatively against it.
"Yeah, so overall, this is a pretty strong report. It's a really strong beat on Q2. As you noted, it's an outlook raise. But investors have high expectations for this company now."
Cohn leads Bloomberg's consumer team, which covers Macy's and its peers, and reads the company's earnings calls alongside the numbers.
I listened to the full segment so you can skip it.
Here are the 3 insights that matter.
👤 Guest: Emily Cohn, Consumer Team Leader at Bloomberg
🎙️ Hosts: Paul Sweeney and Scarlet Fu, who anchor Bloomberg Intelligence from Bloomberg's Interactive Brokers studio in New York
📰 Published: 10 September 2026 on Bloomberg Intelligence
🟣 Apple Podcasts | 🔗 Episode page | ⏱️ 4 min
Key Takeaways
Macy's beat on Q2 and raised its outlook, and the stock still fell about 3% because the bar has moved
The company is guiding conservatively against a strong third quarter a year ago
Bloomingdale's posted what Cohn believes is its strongest Q2 revenue ever, and Blue Mercury was strong too
A higher-end Macy's is coming, with real fur and real leather
GLP-1 drugs are helping apparel sales because customers who lose weight have to rebuy their wardrobes
Plus-size is the department where Macy's is struggling
Store count is still coming down, and that is the core of Tony Spring's strategy rather than a retreat
1. A Beat That Wasn't Enough
Cohn's read of the quarter was that the numbers were good and the expectations were better. "Yeah, so overall, this is a pretty strong report. It's a really strong beat on Q2. As you noted, it's an outlook raise. But investors have high expectations for this company now."
The guidance is set against a hard comparison. "So I think the company is being conservative with its growth forecast, measuring year over year after last year's really strong quarter. They're giving themselves some room. And I think analysts and investors have high expectations."
Paul Sweeney opened the segment by noting Macy's shares were down about 3% on the report, and reminded the audience that Macy's is also the parent of Bloomingdale's, which is what makes the mix inside the results the story.
2. Bloomingdale's Blowout Q2
The growth is concentrated at the top of the portfolio. "I mean, Bloomingdale's had a blowout quarter in Q2. I think they had their strongest Q2 revenue ever. The higher end is doing well, and Blue Mercury had posted strong results, too." Cohn described Blue Mercury as the group's higher-end hair and cosmetics brand.
The company is following that money into its own namesake stores. "And now we're seeing them talk a little bit about this like higher end Macy's that we're going to begin to see with real fur and real leather. They're definitely leaning in on the higher end consumer."
Cohn put the strategy in the context of the whole consumer sector rather than one retailer. "You've got a K-shaped economy, and the higher-income customer is spending, and that's where the growth is, and everyone else is feeling the pressure and being much more selective." Her rhetorical question was why a company would chase the more selective half.
The same pattern shows up outside retail. Cohn cited airlines putting in more higher-priced seats at the expense of cheaper ones, and said she has seen it across the board.
3. GLP-1s Sell Wardrobes
What Macy's told investors about the two ends of its customer base. From the desk's account of the earnings call: "So we heard them call out the lower-end shopper coming in two or three times before buying something, being more deliberate. We also heard them say GLP-1s are helping the business. People have to go out and buy new wardrobes, which is really interesting. Where they're struggling, they're struggling in their plus-size department."
The weight-loss-drug tailwind is treated as recurring rather than a one-off. "Because you have new groups of people who are going to be using GLP-1 drugs. So this market just kind of expands or is constant at least."
Price is the gate, and generics are already opening it somewhere. "But as the competition heats up, as when generics eventually hit the market, they're already hitting the market in countries like Brazil. This is going to be a huge potential tailwind for the retailers." The desk also called it a global story rather than an American one.
Bonus Insights
The shrinking store base is presented as the strategy working, not as damage. "We're definitely seeing that store count come down, and that's sort of the hallmark of Tony Spring's strategy for this company. Figure out where the best performing stores are, invest in them, and close down the underperforming ones." The point came out of a question about whether Macy's has reached the right number of stores after years of closures, and the observation that the company once had too many.
Cohn's bottom line is that Macy's is now a company being valued on how well it serves the top of a K-shaped consumer market — Bloomingdale's, Blue Mercury and a more expensive Macy's — while the parts that depend on the more careful shopper, plus-size among them, are where the pressure shows.
Products, Companies & Tools Mentioned
Macy's (Beat on Q2 and raised its outlook, and the stock fell about 3%; store count still coming down under Tony Spring)
Bloomingdale's and Blue Mercury (The higher-end banners carrying the growth, with Bloomingdale's posting what Cohn believes was its strongest Q2 revenue ever)
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