Walmart Inc. Reports Strong Fourth-Quarter Earnings Results
By Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) reported strong fourth-quarter earnings results, with revenue of $164 billion, up 7.3% compared to $152.7 billion in the previous fiscal year.[0] Net income fell 14.6 percent to $11.7 billion, or $4.27 a share, from the $13.7 billion, or $4.87, logged during 2021. The adjusted earnings per share, not including gains from investments and restructuring charges, came to a total of $1.71 – 20 cents higher than the $1.51 that analysts had estimated for the quarter.
Excluding fuel, Walmart U.S. experienced an 8.3% increase in same-store The key industry metric which takes into account sales from stores and clubs that have been open for at least one year.[1] E-commerce sales jumped by 17% year over year for Walmart U.S. Comparable sales at the Walmart U.S. division grew 8.3 percent from a year earlier and 13.9 percent from two years ago, with e-commerce up 17 percent and 18 percent, respectively.
Walmart U.S.'s revenue for the year was $420.533 billion, an increase of 6.9% from the previous fiscal year's $393.247 billion.[0] The retailer's largest segment had operating income of $20.62 billion, which was lower than the $21.587 billion seen in the previous fiscal year.[2] Excluding fuel, same-store sales for the full year increased to 6.6%, an improvement from the 6.4% seen in the previous fiscal year.[2]
The retailer said comps were strong throughout the quarter and that December was the namesake division’s biggest month ever.[0] Walmart CFO John Rainey told CNBC “the consumer is still very pressured,” and if you look at economic indicators, balance sheets are running thinner and savings rates are declining relative to previous periods.[3]
Walmart projected its revenues would rise by 2.5 percent to 3 percent in the coming year — a big step back from the 6 percent average of the past five years and growth last year of 6.7 percent, to $611.3 billion.[0] The company anticipates adjusted earnings per share for the first quarter to be between $1.25 and $1.30, which is lower than the FactSet consensus of $1.37. The company estimates that its adjusted per-share earnings for the entire year will be between $5.90 and $6.05, which is lower than the predicted[4]
0. “Walmart’s Fourth-quarter Tops Estimates, But Forecast Disappoints Jim k” Yahoo Life, 21 Feb. 2023, https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/walmart-fourth-quarter-tops-estimates-115909524.html
1. “Walmart gives soft outlook for the year after posting strong holiday quarter” CNBC, 21 Feb. 2023, https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/21/walmart-wmt-earnings-q4-2023.html
2. “Walmart full year revenue beats estimates, net income down 14.6%” talkbusiness.net, 21 Feb. 2023, https://talkbusiness.net/2023/02/walmart-full-year-revenue-beats-estimates-net-income-down-14-6/
3. “Walmart warns of a slowdown this year as inflation takes its toll” CNN, 21 Feb. 2023, https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/21/business/walmart-earnings-economy/index.html
4. “Walmart Stock Falls On Weak Guidance, May Hold ‘Trade-Down' Upside | Investor's Business Daily” Investor's Business Daily, 21 Feb. 2023, https://www.investors.com/news/walmart-stock-falls-on-weak-guidance-but-may-hold-trade-down-upside/
