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Walmart’s Q4 sales rise, earnings decline

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Retailer also lowered outlook for current quarter

Walmart’s Q4 sales rise, earnings decline

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart on Thursday said fourth quarter net income fell 7.9% to $4.5 billion. The company also lowered its outlook for the current quarter, in part due to the effects of a stronger dollar and the costs of recent store closings. Walmart said last month that it would close 269 stores globally, including 154 in the United States.

Walmart said it now expects same-store sales at U.S. stores to increase by 0.5% this quarter, compared to an earlier forecast of 1.1% growth.

For the three months ended January 31, sales at stores open a year or longer rose 0.6%, the retailer’s sixth straight quarterly gain.

Walmart’s international sales rose 3.3% to $37.4 billion in the period, led by strength in Mexico and Canada.

Walmart executives had used the company’s annual meeting with investors last October to telegraph a tepid financial performance in 2016, citing the company’s plan to spend billions of dollars to improve stores and Internet shopping capabilities. The company said on Thursday that it expects net sales to be flat this fiscal year. In October, officials forecast an increase in annual sales of between 3% and 4% over the next three years, but predicted earnings will rebound by as much as 10% in fiscal 2019 as the effects of its investments in workers and technology kick in.

Walmart is raising its base employee wages and expanding its worker-training program. The workforce investments are expected to add about $1.5 billion in costs in fiscal 2017, ending next January.

Walmart said revenue for fiscal 2016 was $482.1 billion. On a constant-currency basis, revenue was up 2.8% to $499.4 billion.

Global e-commerce sales on a constant-currency basis rose 12% from fiscal 2015 levels, to $13.7 billion.

The company also said on Thursday that it approved an annual cash divided for fiscal 2017 of $2 per share, an increase of 2% from last year’s dividend.

“We’ve had a long history of returns to shareholders, and we’re pleased to continue building on that by raising our annual dividend for the 43rd consecutive year,” said Brett Biggs, the company’s chief financial officer.


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