A massive elephant squeezed into a designer changing stall at Nordstrom, and nobody wants to talk about it.

Let's start with the good news. Nordstrom just dropped Q3 numbers that would make most retailers do a happy dance like David from QVC: Net sales rose 4.6% to $3.3 billion, E-commerce is up 6.4% and Nordstrom Rack (clothes for the normal people) is crushing it with a 10.6% sales bump. 

CEO Erik Nordstrom was practically glowing as he told analysts, “We saw good health for our customers across both banners and across income cohorts.” (I guess people are still buying expensive stuff?).

But here's where our metaphorical elephant starts sweating through its designer blazer. Early Q4 is looking… weird. And by weird, I mean slow. So slow that even Nordstrom's executives are starting to freak out.

"As far as the Q4 slowdown, we really don't have a lot of information on that," Erik Nordstrom basically admitted. Basically… "We're as confused as you are, folks."

And to be blunt, these comments matter a lot. Nordstrom typically piles up a THIRD of its annual net sales during the holiday quarter. So when they start getting nervous, we should all lean in a little closer. The holidays are the Super Bowl of retail, and so far, the team’s playbook looks like Coach Ryan Day’s from the Ohio State vs. Michigan game (nothing new).

Oh, you forgot about the Nordstrom family’s grand scheme to take the company private? Don’t worry, it’s still lurking in the background like that weird family member who won’t stop annoying everyone. In September, Erik, Pete, and their pals at El Puerto de Liverpool (yes, that’s a real company) made a $3.8 billion offer at $23 per share to buy the company.

That offer was basically Nordstrom’s stock price at the time. No premium, no razzle-dazzle, just a “Hey, we’ll give you what it’s worth.” It’s like walking into a car dealership and offering MSRP.

Anyways, Nordstrom's full-year revenue expectations were flat to up 1%. And analysts are split on the stock which is down 1% over the last 6 months. Some are intrigued, some are confused, and most are just waiting to see what wild card the Nordstrom family plays next.

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Stock.News has a position in Nordstrom mentioned in article.