Nov. 26 (UPI) — Macy’s announced that an employee “hid” up to $154 million, prompting the U.S. department store chain to delay the release of its third-quarter earnings report.
The iconic U.S. department store, known for hosting New York City’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, was set to release its latest earning report on Tuesday. However, in a statement released a day prior, the company announced a delay to allow for the completion of an independent investigation into the missing funds.
According to the statement, a single employee overseeing small package delivery expense accounting “made erroneous accounting accrual entities,” enabling them to hide between $132 and $154 million of cumulative delivery expenses between the fourth quarter of 2021 through Nov. 2.
The employee no longer works at the company, Macy’s said, adding that no other employees have been implicated in the matter.
Macy’s stated that the issue was uncovered as they were preparing the earnings report, prompting the initiation of an independent investigation, which identified the unnamed employee as being responsible.
The third-quarter earnings report has been delayed until Dec. 11, when Macy’s will also provide its fourth-quarter and full-year outlooks.
Macy’s added that there is no indication that the issues “had any impact on the company’s cash management activities or vendor payments.”
“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,” Tony Spring, chairman and chief executive officer of Macy’s said in a statement.