Wal-Mart Stores reported earnings for the second quarter that missed the expectations of Wall Street analysts. As a result, the stock price of the retail giant declined more than 3% to $69.60 per share at the time of this writing, around 11:46 AM in New York.
Wal-Mart financial results
Wal-Mart Stores generated earnings of $1.08 per diluted share in the second quarter ended July 31. According to the company, its earnings were negatively impacted by approximately $0.04 due to currency exchange rates.
During the same period a year ago, the retail giant recorded earnings of $1.21 per share. Wall Street analysts expected Wa-Mart Stores to deliver earnings of $1.12 per share, according to data compiled by Thomson Reuters.
Wal-Mart Stores achieved total revenue of $120.2 billion or $124.5 billion on constant currency basis. Its com sales at Wal-Mart U.S. climbed 1.5% due to a 1.3% increase in traffic. The company’s Neighborhood Market comps increased around 7.3% with strong growth from new stores.
According to the company, its global e-commerce sales increased 16%, and gross merchandise value (GMV) rose 18% on constant currency basis.
Wal-Mart Stores distributed $1.6 billion in dividends and repurchased approximately 14 million shares worth $1 billion. The company ended the quarter with $5.1 billion free cash flow.
Wal-Mart requires investments to achieve desired changes
In a statement, Wal-Mart Stores President and CEP Doug McMillon said, “We’re pleased that the investments we’ve made are helping to improve our business even if it’s not as fast as we like. The fundamentals of serving our customers are consistently improving, and it’s reflected in our comps and revenue growth.
McMillion added that Wal-Mart Stores requires investments to achieve its desired changes. He explained that the company’s investments are pressuring its earnings this year.
He also expressed confidence that their “strategic plan would create and robust, sustainable growth for shareholders over time.”
Wal-Mart Stores reduces full-year earnings outlook
Wal-Mart Stores estimated that it would be able to deliver earnings in the range of $4.40 to $4.70 per share for the full year. The retail giant previously estimated to achieve earnings of around $4.70 to $5.05 per share.
