Summary
J.C. Penney may be able to deliver flat to slightly positive comps in Q4 2018, although gross margins will still likely be weak.
Orbital Insight's parking lot data shows strong year-over-year traffic growth at J.C. Penney.
Overall retail numbers have been coming in fairly strong as well.
Weather has been favorable for cold-weather apparel sales.
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While J.C. Penney (JCP) has struggled for awhile, there's some hope that Q4 2018 may show signs of sales stabilization. That would be a welcome situation as it would enhance confidence that Jill Soltau will have at least a few years to attempt to turn around J.C. Penney.
Gross margins are likely to be pretty weak in Q4 2018, but various data points indicate that there's a reasonable chance that J.C. Penney may be able to deliver flat to slightly positive comps in the quarter.
