JC Penney’s stock price dropped almost below $1 on Wednesday – for the first time since 1929 when it began trading on a stock exchange.
The department store chain has been incurring losses since 2010, and is currently knee-deep in $4 billion debt with a junk credit rating. Traffic at its physical stores is thinning out while inventory is piling up, thereby leading the company to offer massive discounts in its struggle to boost sales. JC Penney had a $151 million loss in its third quarter.
The company is considering additional store closures. Its attempted turnaround strategies, such as selling appliances a few years ago, seems to have been unable to create the effect the firm is desperately in need of.