Daily Times

Walmart lifted its full-year forecast on Tuesday following another solid performance at its US stores in the second quarter even as e-commerce growth slowed compared with earlier in the pandemic.

The giant US retailer cited an especially good performance in its grocery business as it reported a 2.4 percent increase in revenues to $141 billion.

Profits dropped 34 percent to $4.3 billion compared with the year-ago quarter.

Walmart Chief Executive Doug McMillon touted the results as “another strong quarter in every part of our business” in a news release that made no mention of the Delta variant that has sparked new restrictions in some parts of the United States.

Late last month, Walmart reinstituted a mask requirement on employees in areas of the United States with high rates of Covid-19.

The results underscored Walmart’s resonance to US consumers as the conditions under Covid-19 have evolved considerably compared with the year-ago period when online sales soared and US households were fortified by government stimulus payments.

Walmart’s US stores enjoyed a 5.2 percent jump in US comparable sales, while international revenues fell following a series of divestitures.

Besides grocery, Walmart also said sales were strong in pets, beauty and baby products, while apparel and travel-related goods were additionally in demand as customers socialize more in the wake of Covid-19 vaccines. Walmart raised its full-year sales outlook to “slightly positive” after previously projecting a decline. The outlook for earnings per share of $6.20 to $6.35 is also higher than Walmart’s earlier forecast.

Shares declined 0.9 percent to $149.35 in pre-market trading.