Walmart Sales Surge as Coronavirus Drives Americans to Stockpile
May 19 2020 - 8:11AM
Dow Jones News
By Sarah Nassauer
Walmart Inc. is reaping the rewards of being one of few
retailers positioned to successfully navigate a global pandemic,
reporting a surge in quarterly sales as consumers flocked to its
giant stores to stock up on food and household goods.
The country's largest retailer said U.S. comparable sales, those
from stores and digital channels operating for at least 12 months,
rose 10% in the quarter ended May 1. It was a period when t he new
coronavirus upended consumer buying habits, forced many competitors
to temporarily close and led more than 30 million Americans to file
for unemployment.
Walmart's U.S. foot traffic fell in the quarter, but spending
per transaction rose 16.5%. Walmart sales got a boost in April when
shoppers spent government stimulus money, the company said.
E-commerce sales jumped 74% as millions of customers switched to
ordering online for home delivery or picking up groceries in the
company's parking lots.
The company said it absorbed about $900 million in additional
costs related to Covid-19, including raising wages for warehouse
workers and paying bonuses to its store staff. It also hired
235,000 new hourly workers to help it staff stores. However,
Walmart still reported a higher operating profit for the
period.
Overall, Walmart's global revenue rose 8.6% to $134.62 billion
and net income rose 4% to $4 billion. Excluding gains on its
investment in China's JD.com, earnings per share were $1.18,
slightly better than Wall Street was expecting.
Shares rose 3.8% in premarket trading, reaching all-time
highs.
Executives said the company was withdrawing its financial
forecasts for the rest of its fiscal year, citing the uncertainty
caused by the virus and restrictions. However, they said the
company was well positioned to operate through the crisis.
Write to Sarah Nassauer at sarah.nassauer@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 19, 2020 07:56 ET (11:56 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Walmart (NYSE:WMT)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Walmart (NYSE:WMT)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024
