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Wal-Mart beats Wall St.
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May 12, 1998: 10:14 a.m. ET
Discount retailer blows past estimates with best quarterly profit gain in 8 years
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - A vibrant spring for retailers powered Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to a 28 percent gain in income in the fiscal first quarter, its best quarterly increase in eight years.
The Bentonville, Ark.-based company, the nation's largest retailer, said net earnings in the quarter ended April 30, 1998, climbed to $828 million, or 37 cents a diluted share, compared with $652 million, or 29 cents a diluted share, in the year-ago period.
Wall Street analysts had expected net income of 34 cents a share, as reported by First Call.
Wal-Mart shares (WMT), which are included in the Dow Jones industrial average, were up 1-1/8 at 52-1/4 in early trading Tuesday.
"I am pleased to report another record quarter of sales and earnings," David Glass, Wal-Mart CEO and president, said. "Each of our divisions achieved profits in excess of their own aggressive plans while continuing to grow sales and market share.''
A rebirth in consumer confidence has lifted many retailers -- and their share prices -- over the past year. During that period, Wal-Mart stock has risen nearly 70 percent from about $30 a share.
Total sales in the first quarter were $29.8 billion, a 17 percent increase from the year-earlier period. Sales in stores open a year or more, which are a major weathervane of a retailer's health, rose 9 percent.
Sales in Wal-Mart's international operations nearly doubled, to just over $2.6 billion in the first quarter.
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Wal - Mart
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