Wal-Mart today (22 February) reported fourth quarter net sales of US$89.3bn, an increase of 8.6% over the fourth quarter of fiscal 2005, and net income of $3.6bn, an increase of 13.4% from the fourth quarter last year. However, the world’s largest retailer offered a cautious profit outlook as it struggles with higher interest expenses and increased competition.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006, the Wal-Mart Stores segment reported operating income of $4.714bn, an increase of 11.1%, compared with $4.242bn in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2005. The Sam’s Club segment had segment operating income for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006 of $377m, an increase of 6.2%, compared with $355m in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2005. International sales rose 9.6% to $18.4bn, but were hurt by weakness at ASDA, the retailer’s UK supermarket unit, which failed to meet fourth quarter profit and sales goals.
Q4 earnings per share were $0.86, up from $0.75 per share in the same prior year quarter. The company said that it expects earnings per share for the first quarter of fiscal 2007 to come in between $0.58 and $0.62, and for fiscal 2007, the forecast is $2.88 to $2.95. This is slightly below analysts expectations: those surveyed by Thompson Financial predicted FY2007 earnings of $2.98 per share.
“We’re pleased our trend of year-over-year increases in sales and net income continues,” said Wal-Mart president and chief executive officer Lee Scott. “We added more than $7bn in sales in the quarter and ended the year strong.”
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalData
