A Wal-Mart cashier helps customers check out at a store.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. of Bentonville cut its earnings outlook early Tuesday, reporting an 11.4 percent drop in second-quarter profit.
The company reported earnings of $3.63 billion, or $1.08 per share, in the second quarter ending July 31. That compares with $4.09 billion, or $1.26 per share, a year ago.
Earnings were pressured by currency fluctuations, lower U.S. margins and investments in customer experience, the company said. Meanwhile, consolidated operating income declined 10 percent.
The average estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.12 per share, according to the Associated Press. Wal-Mart posted revenue of $120.23 billion in the quarter ($124.5 billion on a constant currency basis), beating projections of $120.06 billion from 11 analysts surveyed by Zacks.
Wal-Mart said it expects full-year earnings to be $4.40 to $4.70 per share. Shares slipped 47 cents to $71.91 in pre-market trading.
Other notes from the earnings report:
- Comp sales at Walmart U.S. increased 1.5 percent, driven by traffic of 1.3 percent. Neighborhood Market comps increased approximately 7.3 percent with strong growth from new stores. Customer experience scores improved over last year.
- E-commerce sales globally increased approximately 16 percent on a constant currency basis. Gross merchandise value, or GMV, increased approximately 18 percent on a constant currency basis.
- Wal-Mart updated full year EPS guidance to a range of $4.40 to $4.70, from a previous range of $4.70 to $5.05. That includes third-quarter EPS guidance of $0.93 to $1.05.
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