周一,梅西百貨公司公布季度銷售額下降,并披露一名前雇員涉嫌重大會(huì)計(jì)違規(guī)行為,這一事件給該零售巨頭的聲譽(yù)蒙上了陰影。
市值達(dá)43.4億美元的《財(cái)富》世界500強(qiáng)企業(yè)梅西百貨公司周一宣布,將推遲第三季度財(cái)報(bào)發(fā)布及電話會(huì)議,以便完成對(duì)一名員工的調(diào)查。該員工“涉嫌故意編制不當(dāng)?shù)膽?yīng)計(jì)會(huì)計(jì)分錄”,自2021年第四季度起至11月2日的財(cái)季期間,共隱瞞了高達(dá)1.54億美元的配送成本。據(jù)公司聲明,涉事員工已不再受雇于梅西百貨。
梅西百貨公司董事長(zhǎng)兼首席執(zhí)行官托尼·斯普林(Tony Spring)在一份聲明中表示:“梅西百貨公司堅(jiān)持推崇道德行為文化。在竭力迅速完成調(diào)查并確保此事得到妥善處理的同時(shí),公司全體同仁正專注于為客戶服務(wù),并執(zhí)行公司戰(zhàn)略,以確保在這個(gè)假日購(gòu)物季取得成功。”
周一午盤(pán),該公司股價(jià)下跌3.5%。
梅西百貨以其盛大的感恩節(jié)大游行和大規(guī)模的黑色星期五促銷活動(dòng)而聞名,這兩項(xiàng)活動(dòng)都將于本周舉行。
但梅西百貨公司并非今年首家在賬目上出現(xiàn)重大問(wèn)題的大型公司。由于會(huì)計(jì)和報(bào)告錯(cuò)誤,Planet Fitness、Rivian、洗車先生(Mister Car Wash)等公司都進(jìn)行了盈利修正,同時(shí)也導(dǎo)致了學(xué)校和州政府的預(yù)算危機(jī)。事實(shí)上,投資者咨詢服務(wù)公司Glass Lewis發(fā)現(xiàn),2023年代理投票季的會(huì)計(jì)錯(cuò)誤和誤報(bào)數(shù)量增加了150%。
調(diào)查
該公司的獨(dú)立調(diào)查和取證分析鎖定了對(duì)這些錯(cuò)誤負(fù)有責(zé)任的員工。據(jù)梅西百貨稱,涉事前員工負(fù)責(zé)小包裹配送費(fèi)用事項(xiàng),調(diào)查尚未發(fā)現(xiàn)其他員工參與其中。
自2021年第四季度起至11月2日的財(cái)季期間,該員工故意隱瞞了1.32億至1.54億美元配送費(fèi)用。在此期間,梅西百貨公司確認(rèn)的配送費(fèi)用總額約為43.6億美元。
然而,梅西百貨公司在一份聲明中指出,“目前沒(méi)有跡象表明應(yīng)計(jì)會(huì)計(jì)分錄錯(cuò)誤對(duì)公司的現(xiàn)金管理或供應(yīng)商付款造成任何影響?!?/p>
梅西百貨并未透露故意造成這些會(huì)計(jì)錯(cuò)誤的具體原因。對(duì)于《財(cái)富》雜志提出的進(jìn)一步置評(píng)請(qǐng)求,包括該員工的動(dòng)機(jī)、是否有其他員工涉及、涉事員工的離職時(shí)間以及調(diào)查的預(yù)計(jì)完成時(shí)間,公司尚未給出即時(shí)回應(yīng)。
梅西百貨面臨財(cái)務(wù)挑戰(zhàn)
據(jù)雅虎財(cái)經(jīng)報(bào)道,盡管梅西百貨公司未能在周一發(fā)布完整的財(cái)報(bào),但該零售商報(bào)告稱,其第三季度銷售額下降2.4%,至47.4億美元,略低于華爾街分析師預(yù)期的47.5億美元。
該公司預(yù)計(jì)將在12月11日前公布完整的第三季度財(cái)報(bào),并召開(kāi)電話會(huì)議,屆時(shí)它還將提供第四季度及全年的業(yè)績(jī)指引。
此前,梅西百貨公司在2月份宣布,鑒于2023年第四季度出現(xiàn)虧損和銷售額下降,公司計(jì)劃在未來(lái)三年內(nèi)關(guān)閉150家業(yè)績(jī)不佳的門(mén)店。取而代之的是,該公司將重點(diǎn)關(guān)注350家最具增長(zhǎng)潛力的門(mén)店。
梅西百貨公司首席運(yùn)營(yíng)官兼首席財(cái)務(wù)官阿德里安·V·米切爾(Adrian V. Mitchell)在11月11日的《財(cái)富》雜志《首席財(cái)務(wù)官每日通訊》(CFO Daily newsletter)專欄中對(duì)記者謝麗爾·埃斯特拉達(dá)(Sheryl Estrada)表示:“歷經(jīng)多年的業(yè)務(wù)下滑,我們決心采取一系列大膽措施。我們正在汲取許多經(jīng)驗(yàn)教訓(xùn),原因是我們正在深入挖掘問(wèn)題的根源,致力于尋找使我們的業(yè)務(wù)變得更加強(qiáng)健,甚至健康的途徑?!?/p>
今年早些時(shí)候,梅西百貨公司還拒絕了對(duì)沖基金Arkhouse Management和投資管理公司Brigade Capital Management提出的58億美元收購(gòu)要約,此前該公司宣布將裁減3.5%的員工。梅西百貨在一份聲明中表示,拒絕該交易是因?yàn)椤安豢尚?,而且……未能為梅西百貨公司的股東提供令人信服的價(jià)值”。
毋庸置疑的是,梅西百貨公司在假日購(gòu)物季來(lái)臨之際,為其旗下的梅西百貨、布魯明戴爾百貨和Bluemercury百貨商店及其配送中心,招聘了超過(guò)3.15萬(wàn)名全職和兼職的季節(jié)性員工。
米切爾說(shuō):"梅西百貨仍然是一個(gè)標(biāo)志性品牌?!保ㄘ?cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:中慧言-王芳
周一,梅西百貨公司公布季度銷售額下降,并披露一名前雇員涉嫌重大會(huì)計(jì)違規(guī)行為,這一事件給該零售巨頭的聲譽(yù)蒙上了陰影。
市值達(dá)43.4億美元的《財(cái)富》世界500強(qiáng)企業(yè)梅西百貨公司周一宣布,將推遲第三季度財(cái)報(bào)發(fā)布及電話會(huì)議,以便完成對(duì)一名員工的調(diào)查。該員工“涉嫌故意編制不當(dāng)?shù)膽?yīng)計(jì)會(huì)計(jì)分錄”,自2021年第四季度起至11月2日的財(cái)季期間,共隱瞞了高達(dá)1.54億美元的配送成本。據(jù)公司聲明,涉事員工已不再受雇于梅西百貨。
梅西百貨公司董事長(zhǎng)兼首席執(zhí)行官托尼·斯普林(Tony Spring)在一份聲明中表示:“梅西百貨公司堅(jiān)持推崇道德行為文化。在竭力迅速完成調(diào)查并確保此事得到妥善處理的同時(shí),公司全體同仁正專注于為客戶服務(wù),并執(zhí)行公司戰(zhàn)略,以確保在這個(gè)假日購(gòu)物季取得成功?!?/p>
周一午盤(pán),該公司股價(jià)下跌3.5%。
梅西百貨以其盛大的感恩節(jié)大游行和大規(guī)模的黑色星期五促銷活動(dòng)而聞名,這兩項(xiàng)活動(dòng)都將于本周舉行。
但梅西百貨公司并非今年首家在賬目上出現(xiàn)重大問(wèn)題的大型公司。由于會(huì)計(jì)和報(bào)告錯(cuò)誤,Planet Fitness、Rivian、洗車先生(Mister Car Wash)等公司都進(jìn)行了盈利修正,同時(shí)也導(dǎo)致了學(xué)校和州政府的預(yù)算危機(jī)。事實(shí)上,投資者咨詢服務(wù)公司Glass Lewis發(fā)現(xiàn),2023年代理投票季的會(huì)計(jì)錯(cuò)誤和誤報(bào)數(shù)量增加了150%。
調(diào)查
該公司的獨(dú)立調(diào)查和取證分析鎖定了對(duì)這些錯(cuò)誤負(fù)有責(zé)任的員工。據(jù)梅西百貨稱,涉事前員工負(fù)責(zé)小包裹配送費(fèi)用事項(xiàng),調(diào)查尚未發(fā)現(xiàn)其他員工參與其中。
自2021年第四季度起至11月2日的財(cái)季期間,該員工故意隱瞞了1.32億至1.54億美元配送費(fèi)用。在此期間,梅西百貨公司確認(rèn)的配送費(fèi)用總額約為43.6億美元。
然而,梅西百貨公司在一份聲明中指出,“目前沒(méi)有跡象表明應(yīng)計(jì)會(huì)計(jì)分錄錯(cuò)誤對(duì)公司的現(xiàn)金管理或供應(yīng)商付款造成任何影響。”
梅西百貨并未透露故意造成這些會(huì)計(jì)錯(cuò)誤的具體原因。對(duì)于《財(cái)富》雜志提出的進(jìn)一步置評(píng)請(qǐng)求,包括該員工的動(dòng)機(jī)、是否有其他員工涉及、涉事員工的離職時(shí)間以及調(diào)查的預(yù)計(jì)完成時(shí)間,公司尚未給出即時(shí)回應(yīng)。
梅西百貨面臨財(cái)務(wù)挑戰(zhàn)
據(jù)雅虎財(cái)經(jīng)報(bào)道,盡管梅西百貨公司未能在周一發(fā)布完整的財(cái)報(bào),但該零售商報(bào)告稱,其第三季度銷售額下降2.4%,至47.4億美元,略低于華爾街分析師預(yù)期的47.5億美元。
該公司預(yù)計(jì)將在12月11日前公布完整的第三季度財(cái)報(bào),并召開(kāi)電話會(huì)議,屆時(shí)它還將提供第四季度及全年的業(yè)績(jī)指引。
此前,梅西百貨公司在2月份宣布,鑒于2023年第四季度出現(xiàn)虧損和銷售額下降,公司計(jì)劃在未來(lái)三年內(nèi)關(guān)閉150家業(yè)績(jī)不佳的門(mén)店。取而代之的是,該公司將重點(diǎn)關(guān)注350家最具增長(zhǎng)潛力的門(mén)店。
梅西百貨公司首席運(yùn)營(yíng)官兼首席財(cái)務(wù)官阿德里安·V·米切爾(Adrian V. Mitchell)在11月11日的《財(cái)富》雜志《首席財(cái)務(wù)官每日通訊》(CFO Daily newsletter)專欄中對(duì)記者謝麗爾·埃斯特拉達(dá)(Sheryl Estrada)表示:“歷經(jīng)多年的業(yè)務(wù)下滑,我們決心采取一系列大膽措施。我們正在汲取許多經(jīng)驗(yàn)教訓(xùn),原因是我們正在深入挖掘問(wèn)題的根源,致力于尋找使我們的業(yè)務(wù)變得更加強(qiáng)健,甚至健康的途徑?!?/p>
今年早些時(shí)候,梅西百貨公司還拒絕了對(duì)沖基金Arkhouse Management和投資管理公司Brigade Capital Management提出的58億美元收購(gòu)要約,此前該公司宣布將裁減3.5%的員工。梅西百貨在一份聲明中表示,拒絕該交易是因?yàn)椤安豢尚?,而且……未能為梅西百貨公司的股東提供令人信服的價(jià)值”。
毋庸置疑的是,梅西百貨公司在假日購(gòu)物季來(lái)臨之際,為其旗下的梅西百貨、布魯明戴爾百貨和Bluemercury百貨商店及其配送中心,招聘了超過(guò)3.15萬(wàn)名全職和兼職的季節(jié)性員工。
米切爾說(shuō):"梅西百貨仍然是一個(gè)標(biāo)志性品牌。”(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:中慧言-王芳
The magic of Macy’s was dulled on Monday after the retailer announced that quarterly sales were down—and one of its former employees had made a humongous accounting error on purpose.
Macy’s, a Fortune 500 company with a $4.34 billion market cap, announced Monday it would delay its third-quarter earnings release and conference call to allow for the completion of an investigation into an employee who “intentionally made erroneous accounting accrual entries,” hiding up to $154 million in delivery expenses from Q4 2021 through the fiscal quarter that ended Nov. 2. The employee is no longer working at Macy’s, according to the statement.
“At Macy’s, Inc., we promote a culture of ethical conduct,” Tony Spring, chairman and CEO of Macy’s, said in a statement. “While we work diligently to complete the investigation as soon as practicable and ensure this matter is handled appropriately, our colleagues across the company are focused on serving our customers and executing our strategy for a successful holiday season.”
Its share price was down 3.5% in midday trading on Monday.
Macy’s is renowned for its glitzy Thanksgiving Day Parade and massive Black Friday sale, both set to happen this week.
But it isn’t the first big company to have a major snafu in its books this year. Accounting and reporting errors caused earnings corrections for Planet Fitness, Rivian, Mister Car Wash, and others—and also contributed to budget crises for schools and state governments. Indeed, investor advisory services company Glass Lewis found a 150% increase in accounting errors and misstatements in the 2023 proxy season.
The investigation
The company’s independent investigation and forensic analysis identified the employee who is responsible for the errors. The now-former staffer was in charge of small package delivery expenses, and the investigation has not identified any other employees who may have been involved, according to Macy’s.
From the fourth quarter of 2021 to the quarter that ended Nov. 2, the employee intentionally hid between $132 million to $154 million in delivery expenses. During that time period, Macy’s recognized about $4.36 billion in total delivery expenses.
However, “there is no indication that the erroneous accounting accrual entries had any impact on the company’s cash management activities or vendor payments,” according to a statement from Macy’s.
Macy’s didn’t indicate why these errors would have been made intentionally. The company didn’t immediately respond to Fortune’s request for additional comment about why the employee would have done this, whether more employees could’ve been involved, when the employee in question left the company, and when exactly the investigation will be completed.
Macy’s facing financial challenges
While Macy’s didn’t release a full earnings statement on Monday, the retailer reported that its third-quarter sales fell 2.4% to $4.74 billion, just missing the $4.75 billion Wall Street analysts expected, according to Yahoo Finance.
The company expects to report full third-quarter results and hold a conference call by Dec. 11, when it will also provide fourth-quarter and full-year guidance.
This announcement comes at the heels of Macy’s February announcement that it would close 150 underproductive stores during the next three years after fourth-quarter 2023 losses and declining sales. Instead, the company is focusing on 350 stores that Macy’s believes have the best capacity for growth.
“Over a number of years, we’ve seen that business decline over time, but we decided to make what I would call some bold moves,” Adrian V. Mitchell, Macy’s chief operating officer and chief financial officer, told Fortune’s Sheryl Estrada for the Nov. 11 CFO Daily newsletter. “There’s so much that we’re learning as we’re really peeling back the onion on how to make this business better and even healthier.”
Early this year, Macy’s also rejected a $5.8 billion takeover offer from hedge fund Arkhouse Management and investment manager Brigade Capital Management after the retailer announced it would lay off 3.5% of its workforce. Macy’s turned down the deal because it was “not actionable and…fails to provide compelling value to Macy’s Inc. shareholders,” the company said in a statement.
To be sure, Macy’s hired more than 31,500 full and part-time seasonal positions for Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Bluemercury stores, as well as its distribution centers, ahead of the holiday season.
“Macy’s is still an iconic brand,” Mitchell said.