Wal-Mart Increases Sales but Misses Revenue Estimate

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Wal-Mart (NYS: WMT) reported earnings on May 16. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended April 30 (Q1), Wal-Mart missed estimates on revenues and met expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased slightly. GAAP earnings per share expanded.


Gross margins expanded, operating margins were steady, net margins were steady.

Revenue details
 Wal-Mart logged revenue of $113.43 billion. The 16 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ wanted to see revenue of $115.78 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were the same as the prior-year quarter's.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at $1.14. The 26 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $1.15 per share. GAAP EPS of $1.14 for Q1 were 4.6% higher than the prior-year quarter's $1.09 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 24.7%, 10 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 5.7%, much about the same as the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 3.3%, much about the same as the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $119.09 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.29.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $489.08 billion. The average EPS estimate is $5.35.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 6,280 members out of 7,058 rating the stock outperform, and 778 members rating it underperform. Among 1,693 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 1,577 give Wal-Mart a green thumbs-up, and 116 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Wal-Mart is outperform, with an average price target of $78.16.

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The article Wal-Mart Increases Sales but Misses Revenue Estimate originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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