Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT) stock jumped 10 percent on Thursday after the company reported a big second-quarter earnings beat and hit its target for online sales growth. Unlike other retailers who are struggling with rising costs, Walmart seems to be thriving in a difficult environment.
For the second straight quarter, Walmart wowed the market by exceeding Wall Street expectations on earnings per share, revenue and same-store sales growth.
WMT earnings by the numbers. On Thursday, WMT reported second-quarter EPS of $1.29 on revenue of $128.03 billion. Analysts had predicted $1.22 and $125.97 billion, respectively. Revenue was up 3.8 percent from a year ago.
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Same-store sales grew 4.5 percent, ahead of Wall Street expectations for 2.4 percent.
After dropping to 23 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017, online sales growth continued trending in a positive direction for the second straight quarter. Walmart reported 40 percent e-commerce sales growth in the second quarter, up from 33 percent in the first quarter.
Sam’s Club performance was once again particularly strong in the second quarter. Walmart reported Sam’s Club same-store sales growth of 5 percent, its highest growth in six years.
International sales were up 4 percent to $29.5 billion. Walmart has been investing heavily in high-growth international markets such as India and China via partnerships and acquisitions.
“Thanks to the hard work of our associates, we had a great quarter with strong results and momentum across the business,” CEO Doug McMillon says in a statement. “We’re continuing to aggressively roll out grocery pickup and delivery in the U.S., and we recently announced expanded omni-channel initiatives in China and Mexico.”
Looking ahead, Walmart also raised its full-year adjusted EPS guidance from a previous range of between $4.75 and $5 to a new range of between $4.90 and $5.05. Walmart raised its full-year consolidated net sales growth guidance from a range between 1.5 percent and 2 percent to “about 2 percent.” In addition, the company reiterated its previous guidance for full-year online sales growth of 40 percent.
Bank of America analyst Robert Ohmes says Walmart’s aggressive investments are clearly paying off.
“WMT U.S. stores continue to perform well, led by grocery (best comps in nine years), apparel, and seasonal,” Ohmes says.
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Bank of America has a “buy” rating and $98 price target for WMT stock.
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Walmart Inc (WMT) Stock Soars on Strong Quarter originally appeared on usnews.com
