Walmart on Thursday topped quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, as the discounter made significant e-commerce gains, drove profits with newer businesses like advertising and won over more high-income shoppers.
The big-box retailer said it now expects to hit the high-end or slightly top its previous full-year guidance. Walmart had expected net sales growth of 3% to 4% and adjusted earnings per share of between $2.23 and $2.37.
In an interview with CNBC, Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said one of the factors boosting Walmart’s grocery business is the widening gap between the price of cooking at home and buying food at fast-food chains or restaurants.
Plus, he added, shoppers – especially with higher incomes – appreciate the convenience that Walmart offers. For the first time, its delivery business surpassed its store pickup in terms of volume, Rainey said.
“We’ve got customers that are coming to us more frequently than they have before and newer customers that we haven’t traditionally had, and they’re coming into a Walmart whether it’s a virtual store online, or whether it’s one of our physical stores,” he said.
Here’s what the discounter reported for the three-month period that ended April 30 compared with what Wall Street expected, according to a survey of analysts by LSEG:
- Earnings per share: 60 cents adjusted vs. 52 cents expected
- Revenue: $161.51 billion vs. $159.50 billion
Walmart’s net income jumped to $5.10 billion, or 63 cents per share, compared with $1.67 billion, or 21 cents per share, in the year-ago period.
Revenue climbed 6% from $152.30 billion in the year-ago quarter. That increase includes a benefit of roughly 1% from an additional selling day in the period.
Walmart shares rose about 5% in premarket trading Thursday.
As the nation’s largest retailer and private employer, Walmart is often viewed as a bellwether for the U.S. economy. Yet it has generally fared better during an inflationary period than other retailers because it sells staples like groceries and has a value-oriented reputation.
Same-store sales for Walmart U.S. climbed by 3.8%, excluding fuel. The industry metric includes sales from stores and clubs open for at least a year. At Sam’s Club, same-store sales rose 4.4% year over year, excluding fuel.
E-commerce sales shot up by 22% year over year for Walmart U.S., fueled by store pickup and delivery of online orders, as well as the company’s growing third-party marketplace.
This week brought promising news for Walmart and other retailers: Inflation eased in April, according to the Labor Department data released on Wednesday. The consumer price index was up 3.4% year over year. The closely-watched number tracks how much goods and services cost at the cash register.
Even so, the discounter has noticed the impact of inflation, as its shoppers have been selective with purchases. Rainey said customers’ “wallets are still stretched.” He said shoppers have bought less general merchandise, such as home goods and electronics, as they prioritize spending on food and health-related items, a trend that the company has seen for the past several quarters.
Still, “even the low-income consumer seems to be holding in there pretty well,” he said. Rainey added that sales even in general merchandise categories improved year over year.
Walmart has looked beyond retail to drive profits higher and fend off rivals like Amazon. Those newer businesses like advertising and its subscription-based membership program, Walmart+, lifted its profits during the quarter. The company’s global advertising business grew 24% during the quarter, including 26% growth for the segment in the U.S.
Rainey said a third of the company’s year-over-year operating income gains came from those newer businesses.
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