Macy's, Inc. announced that it will close its downtown St. Louis store in the Railway Exchange Building at 601 Olive St. A final clearance sale will begin on June 2, 2013 and is expected to run for approximately 10 weeks. The store, opened in 1924, currently includes about 189,000 square feet of space with a workforce of 94 associates. The company is committed to treating these affected associates with respect and openness. Associates displaced by the closings may be offered positions in nearby stores and facilities where possible. Eligible full-time and part-time associates who are laid off due to the store closing will be offered severance benefits.

Macy's, Inc. board of directors has authorized an increase in the quarterly dividend on the company's common stock to 25 cents per share from the current 20 cents per share. The new dividend will be payable July 1, 2013, to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 14, 2013. On May 10, 2013, the company entered into a new $1.5 billion, five-year Credit Agreement that will mature on May 10, 2018. It replaces a previous $1.5 billion facility maturing in June 2015.

Macy's, Inc. reported unaudited consolidated earnings results for the first quarter ended May 4, 2013. For the quarter, the company reported net sales of $6,387,000 against $6,143,000 for the same period in the last year. Operating income was $435,000 against $391,000 for the same period in the last year. Income before income taxes was $338,000 against $279,000 for the same period in the last year. Net income was $217,000 or $0.55 per diluted share against $181,000 or $0.43 per diluted share for the same period in the last year, a 28% increase over a year ago, driven both by increases in sales and in profitability, along with the benefits of utilizing excess cash to buy back shares. Net cash provided by operating activities was $298,000 against $265,000 for the same period in the last year. Purchase of property and equipment was $65,000 against $168,000 for the same period in the last year. Capitalized software was $50,000 against $46,000 for the same period in the last year. On a comparable sales basis, the company's first quarter sales were up 3.8% in 2013 over 2012. The company continues to expect comparable sales to grow by approximately 3.5% in 2013. The company also reiterated its guidance for earnings per diluted share in fiscal 2013 of $3.90 to $3.95. The company expected to spend capex about $925 million. The company still expects that the effective tax rate for the year, to be approximately 36.95%. The company expects second quarter sales to fall below that in the first quarter.