Retailer WalMart (NYSE: WMT) reported earnings on Thursday that beat expectations on the top and bottom line.
First-quarter earnings came in at $1.14 cents per share vs. $1.12 per share forecast by Thomson Reuters. Revenue was $122.69 billion vs. $120.51 billion forecast. Same-store sales growth was 2.1% vs. 2% forecast.
Moreover, Sam’s Club comp sales increased 3.8% led by comp traffic growth of 5.6%. Tobacco sales negatively impacted comp sales by approximately 140 basis points.
Net sales at WalMart International were $30.3 billion, an increase of 11.7%.
Excluding currency, net sales were $28.3 billion, an increase of 4.5%. Eight of 11 markets posted positive comp sales, including our four largest markets.
The company generated $5.2 billion in operating cash flow.
Adjusted EPS excludes the impact of two items. The first item is an unrealized loss of $0.47 on the company’s equity investment in JD.com due to a change in accounting principles.
Last quarter, WalMart sent shares tumbling when it reported slowing e-commerce sales. Still, the company is taking steps to revitalize its e-commerce arm, particularly in food. The retailer has been re-outfitting its stores to adjust for online delivery and further pushing out its meal kit business.
Meanwhile, WalMart is amid an international transformation, announcing two deals over the past month.
It plans to partially exit its stake in British grocer Asda by merging the business with peer J Sainsbury, it said in April. Earlier this month, it announced a $16-billion acquisition of Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart.
WalMart shares began Thursday up $1.10, or 1.2%, to $87.23
