"Our results were not up to Wal-Mart's standards," said H. Lee Scott, the company's president and CEO, noting, "If oil prices stay at the current level or go lower, we will see better sales momentum."
The retailer's net sales were $70.9 billion, a 9.5% increase over the same year-ago period. Net income was $2.5 billion, a 13.6% jump.
On the international front, sales were $14.1 billion, up 12.4%. Argentina, Brazil and Mexico were the company's strongest-performing countries, said Joseph Fitzsimmons, Wal-Mart's SVP of finance and treasurer. However, the retailer's Asda chain is facing challenges in the United Kingdom, he said. "After years of strong growth in the market, sales have slowed," he acknowledged, saying that the chain is facing increased competition and that the company will introduce more private-label goods to fight the slowdown.
During the quarter, Wal-Mart opened two discount stores, bring its total to 1,320; 13 Superstores, bringing it to 1,761; one Sam's Club, upping its total to 552; one Neighborhood Market, pushing it to 65; and 13 international units, bringing it to 1,596.
Wal-Mart officials are projecting a year-over-year same-store sales increase of 2% to 4% for the current quarter and expect a stronger turnaround in the second half of the year, they said.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
