Walmart sales still up, but at a slower pace

Retail giant Walmart recorded another strong quarter but sales gains have backed off compared to earlier in the COVID-19 pandemic.

The latest sales numbers from Walmart, for the quarter ending Oct. 30, show U.S. comparable sales were up 6.4% compared with year-ago levels. That is slightly down from the 9.3% increase in comparable-store sales for the previous quarter.
Walmart e-commerce sales for the quarter ending Oct. 31 were up 79% compared with last year. In the most recent quarter that ended July 31, e-commerce sales jumped 97%.

The e-commerce gains during the pandemic should stick after it eases, said Douglas McMillon, president and CEO of Walmart, during a earnings call with analysts.

“We’re convinced that most of the behavior change will persist beyond the pandemic, and that our combination of strong stores and emerging digital capabilities will be a winning formula,” he said. 

McMillon said Walmart’s e-commerce and omnichannel penetration accelerated trends by two to three years in some cases because of the pandemic. He said in-stock levels have improved compared with the previous quarter, but the numbers are still below where the retailer wants to be.

Walmart did not offer any numbers on the consumer acceptance of its just-launched Walmart+ membership plan, which offers free delivery for an annual membership fee and minimum order.

Revenue growth

Walmart’s total revenue for the quarter ending Oct. 30 was $134.7 billion, an increase of 5.2% compared with a year ago. For the quarter ending July 31, Walmart’s revenue was $137.7 billion, a 5.6% gain over a year ago.

The quarterly report showed comparable store sales and average ticket totals were up, while the number of transactions was down. For the quarter ending Oct. 30, comparable sales were up 6.4%, while the number of comparable transactions was down 14.2%; average ticket size was up 24%. 

For the quarter ending July 31, the company reported comparable-store sales were up 9,3%, transactions were off 14% and the average ticket was 27% higher.

Walmart said about 3,600 Walmart locations have grocery pickup (click and collect) services for the quarter ending Oct. 30, up from about 3,450 locations for the previous quarter. Same-day delivery is available for 2,900 stores for the quarter ending Oct. 31, up from 2,730 stores in the previous quarter. 

John Furner, president and CEO of Walmart U.S., said in the earnings call that the retailer was happy with food sales.

“Our food comps in total were just in the — call it the mid- to high-single-digit range and we did see share improvements from the second quarter,” he said. Longer store hours in the third quarter helped food business and he said the chain has seen a trend improvement in the food segment over the last two quarters.

He said Walmart has doubled the number of people in Walmart Pickup services to 140,000 this year.

“Overall, the improvement in food share has been pleasant from the second quarter to the third,” Furner said in the earnings call.