UPDATE: Wal-Mart March Sales Disappoint, But Outlook Solid
2009年4月10日 - 2:15AM
Dow Jones News
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s (WMT) same-store sales fell short of
expectations for March, but do reflect the strength of consumers'
more basic approach to life.
The retailer's home furnishings department - along with
"do-it-yourself" items - had mid-single-digit
comparable-store-sales gains that exceeded the company's overall
showing. The figures reflect the eat-at-home trend and the
retailer's own stepped-up merchandising efforts in those areas.
Cookware, dinnerware and food-service items were among the best
performers in the housewares group.
Overall same-store-sales rose 1.4% last month, excluding fuel,
when a 3.2% increase was projected. Wal-Mart attributed the
softness to Easter's shift to April this year from March in
2008.
Mitigating the short-term negative, Wal-Mart raised its guidance
for the first quarter, which closes at the end of April, to the
high end of its previously announced range of 72 cents to 77 cents
a share.
The world's biggest retailer also said comparable-store sales
for the first three months of the fiscal year will come in toward
the top of its earlier forecast of 1% to 3% growth.
Wal-Mart is at a run rate that has its comparable-store sales
beating the high end. The 1.4% advance in March, averaged with
February's 5.1% gain, shows 3.1% growth for the first two months of
the first quarter. And April is expected to benefit from the Easter
calendar shift to this month.
March was the month that Wal-Mart's new policy of not issuing
monthly guidance went into effect. Analysts acted largely on what
the retailer has been doing in general and their assessments of
impacts from ongoing sluggish economic conditions.
There is no way of knowing what Wal-Mart itself expected. "We
don't know if March was below plan or even above," said Bernard
Sosnick, retail analyst at Gilford Securities.
Wal-Mart did struggle, as did other global retailers, with the
impact of the stronger dollar.
When transacted in weaker currencies and translated back to U.S.
dollars, Wal-Mart saw international same-store sales fall 14.8% on
a year-over-year basis, while U.S. operations rose 2.6% and Sam's
Club posted a 2.2% growth.
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) also suffered because of currency
exchange rates and, some analysts say, from Wal-Mart's Sam's Club
becoming a stronger competitor.
Costco's comparable sales at stores overseas dropped 13% in
March, while U.S. same-store sales declined 2%.
Core comps, which exclude gas sales, currency fluctuations and
the shift in Easter to April this year, came in at 2.3%, the
company's worst in years, said JPMorgan analyst Charles Grom in a
research note.
Customer transactions at Costco fell 10%, their largest decline
in at least six years, and a 200 basis point drop from February,
Grom said.
Costco appears to be losing ground to Sam's Club, said Brian
Sozzi, retail analyst at Wall Street Strategies.
"I've started to see it in the past two or three months," Sozzi
said. "Sam's Club is doing a better job at getting the word out
about value, especially in consumables. Both companies are still
having problems in some of their more discretionary
categories."
Investors are sending shares of both companies lower. Wal-Mart
is off $2.27, or 4.3%, to $50.34. Costco is down $1.20, or 2.5%, to
$46.50.
Analysts say the long-term picture for Wal-Mart is still very
solid. "Wal-Mart is still out there doing all the right things,"
said Erin Armendinger, managing director of the Wharton School's
retail program. "They are shouting value and consumers are
responding."
Overall, Wal-Mart said comparable-store traffic increased for a
sixth consecutive month in March, but average purchases fell.
Grocery, while showing growth, did see the effect of lower
inflation.
-By Karen Talley, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5106;
karen.talley@dowjones.com