Walmart Reports Q1 Results and Sees Revenue and Profit Jump

Retail giant Walmart posted its first quarter financial results this week with a profit and revenue jump revealed.

Citing increased online sales and a strong performance in food, beverage, as well as general merchandise, Walmart saw its revenue and profit lifted.

U.S. e-commerce sales saw a jump of 37% durig the quarter. Revenue was $123.9 billion, an increase of 1% from the year ago quarter but behind the S&P Global Market Intelligence analyst estimates of $124.2 billion.

Net income totaled $3.8 billion for the quarter, an increase of 80% and higher than the $2.9 billion expected.

Same-store sales at U.S. Walmart locations increased 3.4% in comparison to 2.1% a year ago. This was also higher than the 3.3% expected.

This was the company’s best first-quarter same-store sales performance in nine years.

While the retailer had astounding results in the U.S., there was a downturn in the company’s international operations in the period ended April 26.

The company also promised that it would have 100 percent recyclable packaging for all private-label products by 2025.

“We’re changing to enable more innovation, speed and productivity, and we’re seeing it in our results,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a statement.

“We’re especially pleased with the combination of comparable sales growth from stores and eCommerce in the U.S. Our team is demonstrating an ability to serve customers today while building new capabilities for the future, and I want to thank our associates for a strong start to the year.”

Walmart is “one of the best growing mature retailers in the online market,” wrote Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail.

“This uplift has come from both new customers attracted by Walmart’s improved shipping speeds and existing shoppers buying more as Walmart expands its services and online offer,” Saunders also said. “In our view, Walmart is now a major competitive force in e-commerce and is capable of capturing shopper share from Amazon and others.

Disclaimer: We have no position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) and have not been compensated for this article.