Walmart muscled through rising inflation and snarled global supply chains to put up strong fourth quarter results.
NEW YORK — Walmart muscled through rising inflation and snarled global supply chains to put up strong fourth quarter results Thursday.
Net income reached $3.56 billion, or $1.28 per share in the quarter ended Jan. 31. Per-share earnings adjusted for one-time costs and benefits was $1.53, or 3 cents better than Wall Street expected, according to a survey by FactSet. Revenue rose 0.4% to $151.5 billion.
Last year during the same period the company lost $2.9 billion due partly to costs related to the pandemic.
Same-store sales rose 5.6% at U.S. Walmart stores, down from a 9.2% jump in the third third quarter. Online growth has slowed from the pandemic-infused sprees early last year and rose just 1%, down from 8% growth in the the fiscal third quarter, and a nearly 70% surge a year earlier.
Walmart is the first major retailer to report fourth quarter results and is considered a barometer of consumer spending given its vast reach.
Retail sales in the U.S. jumped a surprisingly strong 3.8% from December to January, the Commerce Department reported this week, with robust spending almost across the board.
It was the largest month-to-month jump in spending since last March when Americans got a federal stimulus check worth $1,400.