That signals a tough holiday shopping period for a retailer that symbolizes the holiday spirit.

With its annual Thanksgiving parade battered by the health crisis, Macy's has laid off thousands of workers, and sales have been plunging due toa outlet closures CEO Jeff Jeanette said the company is keeping an eye on the potential impact the rising wave of Cove in 19 cases may have on its business.

The surge of infections over the last two weeks has raised fears that that could keep people away from shopping at stores in the holiday season.

Over the last three months, Macy's suffered in adjusted net loss of $60 million as its sales plunged 23%.

That loss was a lot smaller than Wall Street expected, but investors pummeled Macy shares Thursday, driving them sharply lower in early trading.