Walmart*, kicked off earnings season for US retailers with disappointing numbers, sending its shares down 4.6% in premarket action. The world’s biggest retailer beat the street by a penny on earnings, beat on sales ($180.5B vs street $180.1B), grew US same store sales over year by 4.6% and raised its dividend by 13%. That all sounds great so far, but traders appear to be choosing to focus on guidance for this year which came in below expectations ($2.50-$2.60 vs street $2.75) and management comments that the company may not be immune to the impact of tariffs.
On this news, US index futures are down 0.2% to 0.3%, giving back yesterday’s US major index gains of 0.1% to 0.2%. Overseas markets have been mostly soft overnight. The Dax is up 0.2% but the FTSE is down 0.4%, the Nikkei fell 1.2% and the Hang Seng declined 1.6%.
The US Dollar is easing back this morning, enabling Gold to gain 0.5%, the Yen to rally 0.9% and the Loonie, Euro, and Pound, to rise 0.2%-0.3%. In commodity action, Copper is up 1.2%, Crude Oil is up 0.5%, but Natural Gas is down 3.5% as we move into the back half of heating season.
Later today, earnings are due from Booking Holdings. Tomorrow focus turns back to economic data with Flash PMI reports coming out from around the world, plus Canada and UK retail sales.
*Shares of Walmart are held in portfolios managed by SIA Wealth Management