Nordstrom’s Shares Slide on Poor Q1 Results

Nordstrom Inc. shares fell sharply in after-hours trading Tuesday after the retailer saw a sharp decline in earnings and sales in the first quarter but said “executional misses are well within our control.” First-quarter net earnings were $37 million, compared with $87 million during the same period in fiscal 2018. Earnings before interest and taxes were $77 million, compared with $153 million in the year-ago period, with the decrease driven primarily by lower sales volume, which fell 3.5 percent. Women’s apparel and beauty were the most challenged areas. The results were released after the stock market closed, and Nordstrom’s shares promptly dived by more than 9 percent in after-hours trading to $34.40. At the market’s official close, the shares had been up 1.04 percent to $37.85. “While we expected softer trends from the fourth quarter to continue into the first quarter, we experienced a further deceleration,” said Erik Nordstrom, co-president. “We had executional misses with our customers, and we’re committed to better serving them. This is well within our control to turn around,” he said. Nordstrom said inventory strength and expense execution “helped mitigate a meaningful portion of our sales miss. We ended the quarter with inventories in solid shape, and our financial position remains

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