Wal-Mart Profits Increase 9.8%
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer, said fourth-quarter profit rose 9.8%, exceeding analysts’ estimates after discounts on toys and electronics attracted holiday shoppers.
Net income rose to $3.94 billion, or 95 cents a share, the Bentonville, Arkansas-based company said yesterday in a statement. Sales climbed 11% to $98.1 billion, driven by gains in Britain and Mexico.
Fourth-quarter sales at stores open at least a year climbed 1.6% as Wal-Mart cut prices during the holidays. The chief executive officer H. Lee Scott re-emphasized the retailer’s “low-price” message after failing to win customers from Target Corp. with exclusive clothing.
“I frankly think the company is showing some very meaningful progress in terms of righting the ship,” a portfolio manager at Huntington Asset Management, Peter Sorrentino, said.
