NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Macy's (M) - Get Report stock is sliding by 5.28% to $46.32 in mid-morning trading on Monday, after Citigroup lowered its price target and earnings estimates on the retailer, following a "tough" quarter for the industry.

Citigroup slashed its price target on Macy's to $48 from $52. The firm also reduced its full year 2015 earnings estimates on Macy's to $4.45 from $4.51 per share.

The firm lowered its numbers on the retailer as weak traffic trends resulted in a shortfall in sales and a rise in inventory.

"Based on our channel checks and commentary from vendors including KORS and RL (covered by Citi analyst Kate McShane), we believe the department store channel had a tough quarter (and faces a challenging future)," Citigroup said in a statement.

"Warm weather combined with already weak traffic trends likely led to a shortfall in sales and we expect inventory to appear elevated across the sector. We believe this is particularly true for the mid-tier players, and we are lowering our estimates/TP for M and KSS," the firm went on to say.

Separately, TheStreet Ratings team rates MACY'S INC as a Buy with a ratings score of B. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

We rate MACY'S INC (M) a BUY. This is driven by a few notable strengths, which we believe should have a greater impact than any weaknesses, and should give investors a better performance opportunity than most stocks we cover. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its notable return on equity and expanding profit margins. We feel its strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income.

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings Team goes as follows:

  • The return on equity has improved slightly when compared to the same quarter one year prior. This can be construed as a modest strength in the organization. When compared to other companies in the Multiline Retail industry and the overall market, MACY'S INC's return on equity exceeds that of the industry average and significantly exceeds that of the S&P 500.
  • MACY'S INC's earnings per share declined by 20.0% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, MACY'S INC increased its bottom line by earning $4.27 versus $3.90 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($4.65 versus $4.27).
  • 40.86% is the gross profit margin for MACY'S INC which we consider to be strong. Regardless of M's high profit margin, it has managed to decrease from the same period last year. Despite the mixed results of the gross profit margin, the net profit margin of 3.55% trails the industry average.
  • M, with its decline in revenue, underperformed when compared the industry average of 7.4%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly dropped by 2.6%. Weakness in the company's revenue seems to have hurt the bottom line, decreasing earnings per share.
  • Reflecting the weaknesses we have cited, including the decline in the company's earnings per share, M has underperformed the S&P 500 Index, declining 11.81% from its price level of one year ago. Looking ahead, although the push and pull of the overall market trend could certainly make a critical difference, we do not see any strong reason stemming from the company's fundamentals that would cause a continuation of last year's decline. In fact, the stock is now selling for less than others in its industry in relation to its current earnings.
  • You can view the full analysis from the report here: M

Any reference to TheStreet Ratings and its underlying recommendation does not reflect the opinion of Jim Cramer, TheStreet or any of its contributors.