Walmart reported better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter earnings early Tuesday, but gave mixed guidance. The Dow Jones retail giant also said it would buy TV maker Vizio for $2.3 billion. WMT stock rose modestly.
Walmart Earnings
Walmart earnings unexpectedly rose 5% to $1.80 a share in the January-ended quarter. Revenue rose 5.7%, fueled by a 23% jump in e-commerce sales. Analysts had expected Walmart earnings per share to fall to $1.64, with revenue up 4.1%.
In the third quarter, Walmart earnings climbed 2% while revenue rose 5%, with both slightly beating. The big-box giant gave weak full-year guidance at the time, signaling a Q4 EPS miss.
Outlook: Walmart sees Q1 EPS of $1.48-$1.56 on a presplit basis vs. Wall Street's target of $1.47. But it sees full-year EPS of $6.70-$7.12, with the midpoint below analyst targets of $7.06. Walmart guided higher on full-year revenue.
Walmart raised its quarterly dividend by 9% to 20.75 cents a share.
Vizio Deal
Walmart, confirming recent reports, will buy smart TV maker Vizio to expand its advertising business. It will pay $2.3 billion, or $11.50 a share. VZIO stock, which jumped last week on buyout buzz, rose 15% to 11.
Walmart Stock Rises
Walmart stock rose 3.2% to 175.86 on Tuesday.
Shares edged up 0.6% to 170.36 last week, still in range of a 163.57 cup-with-handle buy point. Shares have paused near consolidation highs for the past couple weeks. Investors could use that as an alternate entry for WMT stock.
Shares had plunged after the Q3 Walmart earnings report.
The relative strength line has lagged badly since the current market rally started in late October as WMT stock has made little progress while the S&P 500 has run to record highs. The RS line has been lagging for the past 15 years.
Walmart will split 3-for-1 on Friday, Feb. 23.
Fellow Dow retail titan Home Depot also reports before Tuesday's open.
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