Wal-Mart WMT reported blockbuster third-quarter fiscal 2019 results. The mega retailer topped estimates on the top and the bottom lines driven by strength in the e-commerce business. It raised its fiscal year guidance, inspiring optimism about the company’s growth prospects.
Earnings in Focus
Earnings per share came in at $1.08, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6 cents and improving from the year-ago earnings of $1.00. Revenues increased 1.4% year over year to $124.89 billion and were ahead of the consensus mark of $124.86 billion. U.S. same-store sales grew 3.4% in the quarter.
Online sales jumped 43%, indicating that the retailer’s e-commerce business is booming. Wal-Mart expects online sales to grow 40% for the fiscal year. According to the latest data from eMarketer, Wal-Mart is expected to overtake Apple AAPL as the third largest e-commerce retailer in terms of sales this year, behind Amazon AMZN and eBay EBAY. The mega-retailer is expected to take 4% of U.S. e-commerce sales, up from 3.3% last year (read: Should You Take a Bite Into the Beaten-Down Apple ETFs?).
