Nordstrom's second-quarter earnings smashed expectations and management reaffirmed its financial forecasts for the fiscal year, even as sales at the company's banner stores fell more than 10%.

The department-store chain posted adjusted earnings of 84 cents a share, ahead of the consensus call for 45 cents among analysts tracked by FactSet.

Revenue of $3.77 billion was ahead of expectations for $3.68 billion, but fell around 8% compared with the prior year. Nordstrom's (ticker: JWN) decision to push back its yearly Anniversary Sale by a week and wind down its Canadian operations accounted for roughly half of that decline, the company said.

Net sales were in negative territory for both Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack, down 10.1% and 4.1%, respectively. This marks an improvement from the company's first quarter, when Nordstrom's sales fell 11.4% and Nordstrom Rack's were down 11.9%.

"We've worked hard to improve our operating model, and our solid results reflect the continued progress we made against our top priorities to improve Nordstrom Rack performance, increase inventory productivity and deliver efficiencies through supply chain optimization," said CEO Erik Nordstrom.

Nordstrom also reaffirmed its outlook for the fiscal year ending in January. The company sees revenue declining between 4% and 6% compared with fiscal 2022. It said adjusted earnings per share will range between $1.80 and $2.20, excluding share repurchases and charges incurred as the company winds down operations in Canada. Analysts have penciled in $1.98 for annual earnings per share.

The stock was down 3.9% at $16.17 in after-hour trading. The shares closed 4.4% lower, dragged down by concerns over consumers' financial strength following more downbeat commentary from Burlington Stores' (BURL) and Dollar Tree's (DLTR). That left the gain so far in 2023 at 4.2%.

Nordstrom's consumer base skews more toward higher-income households than Burlington and Dollar Tree. That has served as somewhat of a buffer for the company in recent quarters because wealthy consumers tend to be more resilient in economic downturns. But even these shoppers may be starting to feel the pinch.

LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton's (LVMUY) U.S. sales fell by 1% in the company's second fiscal quarter. Ralph Lauren (RL) topped estimates , but warned that some of the company's value-oriented consumers were feeling the macroeconomic pressure. Tapestry, parent company of Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman, missed earnings expectations as North American sales fell by low-single digits "against a challenging consumer backdrop," the company said.

"The aspirational consumer, particularly the lower income cohort is under pressure on a relative basis and being more choiceful," said Tapestry CEO Joanne Crevoiserat in a call with investors last week.