Macy's Inc (NYSE:M) stock is up 0.4% to trade at $22.28, brushing off a morning in the red and pivoting higher midday. The retailer posted adjusted third third-quarter earnings of nine cents per share on $4.71 million in revenue, both of which surprised to the upside. Raising concerns initially was a muted holiday Q4 outlook that came in below analyst estimates, but the stock has since moved higher.
Macy's stock is 33% higher year-to-date and hit a multi-year high of $23.14 just yesterday. Recent consolidation around $23 for the last week is now forming a bullish flag pattern on the charts.
A short squeeze could get M over that hump. Short interest dropped 19% during the most recent reporting period, yet the 19.44 million shares sold short now accounts for 7.3% of the stock's available float. Sentiment also leans bearish. Nine of the 12 covering brokerages sport a "hold" or worse rating, leaving plenty of room for upgrades moving forward.
Options trader have been moving in this morning, with 12,000 calls and 10,000 puts across the tape so far, volume that's quadruple the average intraday pace. Most popular is the December 20 put, where new positions are being bought to open.
