Walmart said its U.S. same-store sales rose 2.6% in the second quarter, the slowest pace in about six years and below both the prior quarter’s 4.1% gain and Wall Street’s expectations. The retailer’s premarket share price fell 6% after it also lowered its full-year earnings outlook.
The company said e-commerce remained a growth driver, but its online sales increase slowed to 24% from 26% in the first quarter. Walmart pointed to continued inflation pressure, including higher gas and everyday item prices, as a factor weighing on consumer spending, along with changes tied to a federal law on access to lower-cost drugs.
Even with the slower same-store sales trend, Walmart reported total second-quarter revenue of $187.94 billion, up 5.9% from a year earlier and above the market estimate of $186.62 billion. Net income came to $6.37 billion, or 81 cents per share on an adjusted basis, topping the 74-cent consensus estimate.
Walmart also said it was seeing more customers from households earning more than $100,000 a year, which helped support results. For the third quarter, the company projected sales growth of 3% to 3.5% and lowered its full-year adjusted earnings forecast to a range of $2.80 to $2.87 per share, signaling a cautious view of consumer demand ahead.
