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Macy's Bets on AI & Digital Innovation to Fuel Long-Term Growth
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Key Takeaways
Macy's grew Q1 2026 net sales by 1.8% to $4.7 billion alongside stronger digital performance.
M said early customer response to its Ask Macy's AI shopping assistant has been favorable.
Macy's continues investing in digital, its Reimagine 200 stores and luxury banners to support growth.
Macy’s Inc. (M - Free Report) is strengthening its digital business as part of its Bold New Chapter strategy, using artificial intelligence, platform enhancements and faster fulfillment to improve customer engagement. The digital channel is becoming increasingly important to the retailer, with digital sales accounting for 34% of first-quarter 2026 net sales, up from 33% a year ago, underscoring consumers’ growing preference for online shopping.
The company’s digital investments are translating into stronger business performance. During the first quarter, digital contributed to positive comparable sales, helping Macy’s deliver 3% comparable sales growth, its strongest first-quarter result in four years, while go-forward comparable sales increased 3.1%. Macy’s reported 1.8% net sales growth to $4.7 billion, reflecting broad-based momentum across its omnichannel operations.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a key differentiator. Macy’s introduced Ask Macy’s, an AI-powered conversational shopping assistant designed using insights from thousands of store associates. The tool helps customers discover products across stores and digital channels, while the company continues improving its digital platform and expanding its curated online marketplace to enhance assortment, personalization and product discovery. Management said early customer response to Ask Macy’s has been favorable.
Technology is also improving operational efficiency. Macy’s reported a 4.2% increase in units processed per hour across its direct-to-consumer and store replenishment network, while order-to-ship times improved 5.7% year over year. The company believes ongoing AI initiatives will further streamline operations, enabling it to better serve customers and support employees while strengthening its omnichannel capabilities.
Macy’s continues investing in digital across its go-forward business, alongside Reimagine 200 stores and its luxury banners. These efforts, coupled with stronger customer engagement and AI-driven personalization, reinforce management’s confidence in sustained omnichannel growth and support its decision to raise full-year fiscal 2026 guidance.
Macy’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Macy’s have risen 44.4% over the past three months compared with the industry’s 21.6% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Macy’s is trading at a forward 12-month price-to-sales ratio of 0.31X, down from the industry average of 0.50X. M has a Value Score of A.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Macy’s fiscal 2026 earnings implies a year-over-year decline of 6.9%, while the same for fiscal 2027 indicates an uptick of 5.2%. Estimates for fiscal 2026 and 2027 have been revised upward by 5 cents and 4 cents, respectively, over the past 30 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Macy’s currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Key Picks
We have highlighted three top-ranked stocks in the retail space, namely, Genesco Inc. (GCO - Free Report) , Tapestry, Inc. (TPR - Free Report) and Ross Stores Inc. (ROST - Free Report) .
Genesco is a specialty retail and branded company that sells footwear and accessories in retail stores. The company flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Genesco’s current fiscal-year earnings implies growth of 55.2% from the year-ago actual. GCO delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 3.8%.
Tapestry offers lifestyle products, which include handbags, women’s and men’s accessories, footwear, jewelry, seasonal apparel collections, sun wear, travel bags, fragrance and watches. It currently sports a Zacks Rank of 1.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Tapestry’s current fiscal-year earnings and sales suggests growth of 36.3% and 13.8%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. TPR delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 15.6%.
Ross Stores operates as an off-price retailer of apparel and home accessories. The company sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ross Stores’ current fiscal-year earnings and sales indicates growth of 17.1% and 9.1%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. ROST delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 10.2%.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Macy's Bets on AI & Digital Innovation to Fuel Long-Term Growth
Key Takeaways
Macy’s Inc. (M - Free Report) is strengthening its digital business as part of its Bold New Chapter strategy, using artificial intelligence, platform enhancements and faster fulfillment to improve customer engagement. The digital channel is becoming increasingly important to the retailer, with digital sales accounting for 34% of first-quarter 2026 net sales, up from 33% a year ago, underscoring consumers’ growing preference for online shopping.
The company’s digital investments are translating into stronger business performance. During the first quarter, digital contributed to positive comparable sales, helping Macy’s deliver 3% comparable sales growth, its strongest first-quarter result in four years, while go-forward comparable sales increased 3.1%. Macy’s reported 1.8% net sales growth to $4.7 billion, reflecting broad-based momentum across its omnichannel operations.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a key differentiator. Macy’s introduced Ask Macy’s, an AI-powered conversational shopping assistant designed using insights from thousands of store associates. The tool helps customers discover products across stores and digital channels, while the company continues improving its digital platform and expanding its curated online marketplace to enhance assortment, personalization and product discovery. Management said early customer response to Ask Macy’s has been favorable.
Technology is also improving operational efficiency. Macy’s reported a 4.2% increase in units processed per hour across its direct-to-consumer and store replenishment network, while order-to-ship times improved 5.7% year over year. The company believes ongoing AI initiatives will further streamline operations, enabling it to better serve customers and support employees while strengthening its omnichannel capabilities.
Macy’s continues investing in digital across its go-forward business, alongside Reimagine 200 stores and its luxury banners. These efforts, coupled with stronger customer engagement and AI-driven personalization, reinforce management’s confidence in sustained omnichannel growth and support its decision to raise full-year fiscal 2026 guidance.
Macy’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Shares of Macy’s have risen 44.4% over the past three months compared with the industry’s 21.6% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Macy’s is trading at a forward 12-month price-to-sales ratio of 0.31X, down from the industry average of 0.50X. M has a Value Score of A.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Macy’s fiscal 2026 earnings implies a year-over-year decline of 6.9%, while the same for fiscal 2027 indicates an uptick of 5.2%. Estimates for fiscal 2026 and 2027 have been revised upward by 5 cents and 4 cents, respectively, over the past 30 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Macy’s currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Key Picks
We have highlighted three top-ranked stocks in the retail space, namely, Genesco Inc. (GCO - Free Report) , Tapestry, Inc. (TPR - Free Report) and Ross Stores Inc. (ROST - Free Report) .
Genesco is a specialty retail and branded company that sells footwear and accessories in retail stores. The company flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Genesco’s current fiscal-year earnings implies growth of 55.2% from the year-ago actual. GCO delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 3.8%.
Tapestry offers lifestyle products, which include handbags, women’s and men’s accessories, footwear, jewelry, seasonal apparel collections, sun wear, travel bags, fragrance and watches. It currently sports a Zacks Rank of 1.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Tapestry’s current fiscal-year earnings and sales suggests growth of 36.3% and 13.8%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. TPR delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 15.6%.
Ross Stores operates as an off-price retailer of apparel and home accessories. The company sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ross Stores’ current fiscal-year earnings and sales indicates growth of 17.1% and 9.1%, respectively, from the year-ago actuals. ROST delivered a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 10.2%.