Rough Day For Retail: Ralph Lauren's CEO Steps Down, Macy's Board A Mess

The retail sector is already off to a rough start in 2017 but the latest developments likely signals the industry's woes will continue.

Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren Corp RL were trading lower by more than 6 percent ahead of Thursday's market open after the company reported its fiscal third-quarter results and a management update.

Ralph Lauren earned $1.86 per share on revenue of $1.7 billion. Wall Street analysts were expecting the company to earn $1.64 per share on revenue of $1.71 billion.

Overshadowed by the earnings beat and slight miss on the revenue line is Ralph Lauren's announcement that its CEO Stefan Larsson will depart from the company.

Larsson and Ralph Lauren "mutually agreed to part ways," but he will stay on until May 1, 2017, while a search for a new CEO will be conducted.

What's Going On Behind The Scenes At Macy's?

The New York Post reported on Thursday that operations at Macy's Inc M may be in disarray behind the scenes.

The publication noted that Macy's outgoing CEO Terry Lundgren is spending his final days at the company looking to avoid an ugly board shakeup.

Meanwhile, Lundgren received offers from "friendly buyers" to acquire the company and a sale could be in the books, as a "proactive measure to head off any attempt to mess with the board."

In addition, a source familiar with the situation told the New York Post that Macy's "would rather sell the company" than deal with an activist investor and major shareholder Starboard Value.

A list of potential buyers includes Canada-based Hudson's Bay Company, which already has a strong footprint in the United States including Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord & Taylor.