The crowds of shoppers came early -- and often -- to J.C. Penney (JCP) - Get Report stores across the country as they opened their doors at 3 p.m. on Thanksgiving.

TheStreet was in the back of a line that snaked around one J.C. Penney store on Long Island, New York. Shoppers were greeted with cards that when scratched, revealed shopping sprees of amounts up to $500 (not all cards were winners). The crowds quickly built around the 60% off sweater tables and the home goods department, where J.C. Penney slashed prices on crock pots and blenders for early shoppers.

By midnight, and with seven visits to J.C. Penney stores under the belt, this much became evident: consumers were going to continue to pile into the stores until the wee hours of the morning.


The lines at one J.C. Penney opening even snaked up to the second floor.

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The strong start for J.C. Penney to Black Friday should not come as a surprise as it has continued to post stronger sales versus rivals this year. J.C. Penney reported a solid 6.4% same-store sales increase for the third quarter, trouncing competitorMacy's (M) - Get Report 3.6% drop. For the nine months ended Oct. 31, J.C. Penney's same-store sales have gained 4.5% compared to a 1.7% decline for Macy's.

If J.C. Penney can sustain its good beginning to the holiday shopping season, it would go a long way to reassuring nervous investors. Shares of the department store retailer plunged as much as 16% on Nov. 13 as investors zeroed in on another loss and weak reports from some of J.C. Penney's rivals, despite a strong quarter of sales for J.C. Penney.

J.C. Penney shares finished Friday's trading down 0.8%.


Customers stocked up on home goods and apparel at J.C. Penney on Thanksgiving.

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TheStreet's Black Friday Scorecard

Crowd size: A

J.C. Penney nailed its Thanksgiving Day 3 p.m. open, seeing strong crowds across the country. Further, the company's compelling discounts such as 60% off in apparel and $19.99 boots kept the crowds trickling in well past midnight.

Bags per shopper: B+

J.C. Penney's core shopper is an economically sensitive one, and is unlikely right now to lever up the store brand credit card to buy five pairs of sneakers. But TheStreet came away with the sense people bought a few more things this Black Friday compared to 2014. In other words, they shopped more sections of J.C. Penney stores, and weren't there solely for the doorbusters mentioned in circulars.

Bag Sizes: A-

People were seen leaving the stores and wandering the mall with J.C. Penney's plastic shopping bags stuffed with discounted apparel, kitchen gadgets and shoes.