When Macy's (NYSE: M) reported third-quarter 2022 earnings in mid-November, the company's top-line numbers weren't so great. But there's much more to the story here, since the retailer has been working to deal with both the massive long-term shifts within the retail sector and the near-term impact of the coronavirus pandemic on consumer buying patterns. Here's what smart investors took away from the tough quarter.

Normally, when investors read a company's quarterly earnings release, the comparison point is the same quarter of the previous year. On that score, Macy's third-quarter 2022 results look pretty abysmal. The top line of the earnings statement, sales, was down 3.9% versus the same period of 2021. On the bottom line, earnings, the results were even worse, with a per-share adjusted profit of $0.52 versus $1.23 in the year-ago period.

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Source Fool.com