On August 20, Wal-Mart declined 6.71% in regular trading, trading at $105.62/share, with turnover of $1.324 billion. Despite beating Q2 revenue and earnings estimates, the stock sold off sharply on weak comparable sales and below-consensus forward guidance.
Wal-Mart reported Q2 revenue of $187.94 billion (vs. estimate $186.87B) and adjusted EPS of $0.81 (vs. estimate $0.74). However, US comparable sales grew only 2.6% excluding fuel, significantly below the 3.8% analyst expectation, marking the weakest quarterly growth in six years. The company cited the Inflation Reduction Act's maximum fair price provisions, which created a 900-basis-point drag on health and wellness comparable sales.
Forward guidance compounded concerns: Q3 adjusted EPS is projected at $0.62-$0.64 versus the $0.68 consensus, while full-year adjusted EPS of $2.80-$2.87 remains below the $2.90 estimate. Full-year net sales growth of 4%-5% also trails the 5.3% market expectation. Additionally, Flipkart's Big Billion Days timing shift is expected to create over 100 basis points of headwind in Q3.
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