Walmart Stores on Thursday reported its third straight quarterly decline in US comparable sales, hurt by a drop in shopper visits, and the world’s largest retailer gave a disappointing profit forecast for the holiday season, reports Reuters. The company said comparable sales at its US stores, its biggest unit, fell 0.3 per cent in the third quarter ended on October 31 in part because of disappointing toy sales and price reductions on televisions.
Wall Street had expected no change in comparable sales, which include those online and at stores open at least a year. Shares of Walmart fell nearly 2 per cent.
‘They just can’t seem to get things going in the US division,’ said Edward Jones analyst Brian Yarbrough. ‘That low-end consumer is just not willing to step out and buy those discretionary items.’
Walmart caters to lower-income customers, who have shown a reluctance to spend this year because of higher payroll taxes and slow job growth.
‘Some customers feel uncertainty about the economy, government, jobs stability,’ chief executive officer Mike Duke said in a recording.
Kohl’s Corp, a mid-tier department store chain that also serves a price-conscious clientele, said its comparable sales fell 1.6 per cent last quarter.
Walmart expects US comparable sales to be flat during the current holiday quarter.
The company forecast a profit of $1.60 to $1.70 per share for that quarter, while Wall Street analysts were expecting $1.69, according to Thomson Reuters.
-With New Age input
