Could JC Penney Shrink Its Pittsburgh Presence?

PITTSBURGH, PA - Could JC Penney soon reduce the number of stores it operates in southwestern Pennsylvania? The retailer already has announced plans to close three stores this year and some analysts believe the chain might need to shutter more than 100 of its 860 locations nationwide.

CNBC reported this week that Penney’s planned to offer more information on possible store closings in its next earnings report due out Feb. 28. That report could be grim: Penney’s stock feel to under $1 per share for the first time ever last month amid increasingly weak apparel sales.

Tekey Advisory Group analyst Dana Telsey told CNBC she expects as many as 30 Penney stores could close this year. Analyst Oliver Chen told the network the chain ultimately needs to shutter about 125 locations, or nearly 15 percent of its stores.

What that means for Penney’s southwestern Pennsylvania stores is unclear, but two of the retailer’s six locations are in struggling malls and could be ripe for closure. One is in the near-vacant Century III in West Mifflin, which is up for sheriff’s sale after its owners declared bankruptcy; the other is in the Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills, which two years ago was purchased for $100 at a bankruptcy auction.

Penney’s other stores in the region are located in:

• Ross Park Mall.

• Monroeville Mall.

• The Mall at Robinson.

• Westmoreland Mall.

Photo: Getty Images.

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