BENTONVILLE, Ark., July 7 -- Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) reported net sales for the 5-week period ending July 1, 2005, and July 2, 2004 as follows (dollars in billions):
5 Weeks Ended 22 Weeks Ended
Percent Percent
7-1-2005 7-2-2004 Change 7-1-2005 7-2-2004 Change
Wal-Mart Stores $ 20.230 $ 18.111 11.7% $ 84.573 $ 76.829 10.1%
SAM'S CLUB 3.898 3.645 6.9% 16.291 15.379 5.9%
International 5.865 5.216 12.4% 25.196 22.247 13.3%
Total Company $ 29.993 $ 26.972 11.2% $126.060 $114.455 10.1%
Comparable sales for the periods ending July 1, 2005 and July 2, 2004, were as follows:
5 Weeks Ended 22 Weeks Ended
7-1-2005 7-2-2004 7-1-2005 7-2-2004
Wal-Mart Stores 4.6 % 1.4 % 3.3 % 4.2 %
SAM'S CLUB 4.0 % 6.4 % 3.3 % 8.4 %
Total U.S. 4.5 % 2.3 % 3.3 % 4.9 %
We estimate comparable sales in the U.S. for the July four-week period to be in the 3 to 5 percent range.
Tom Schoewe, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer said, "We are encouraged by the higher comp store sales momentum. We do, however, continue to experience expense pressure in the quarter. Based on the results of the first two months, we believe analysts' current earnings per share consensus estimate of $0.65 for the second fiscal quarter is reasonable and within our previously stated guidance of $0.63 to $0.67."
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. operates Wal-Mart Stores, Supercenters, Neighborhood Markets and SAM'S CLUB locations in the United States. Internationally, the company operates in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Korea and the United Kingdom. The company's securities are listed on the New York and Pacific stock exchanges under the symbol WMT. More information about Wal-Mart can be found by visiting http://www.walmartfacts.com . Online merchandise sales are available at http://www.walmart.com .
This release contains statements that Wal-Mart believes are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are intended to enjoy the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements provided by that Act. These forward-looking statements, which discuss our management's forecast of comparable sales for the July four-week period and earnings per share for the second fiscal quarter appear in the paragraphs following the comparable sales table in this release. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, domestically and internationally, including, consumer spending patterns and debt levels, weather conditions, competitive pressures, currency exchange fluctuations, trade restrictions, and other risks. We discuss certain of these matters more fully in our filings with the SEC, including our last Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC. This release should be read in conjunction with that Annual Report on Form 10-K and our other filings with the SEC through the date of this report. We urge you to consider all of these risks, uncertainties and other factors carefully in evaluating this forward-looking statement. As a result of these matters, including changes in facts, assumptions not being realized or other circumstances, our actual comparable sales for the July four-week period or earnings per share for the second fiscal quarter may differ materially from forecasts discussed in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this release are made only as of the date of this report, and we undertake no obligation to update the forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.
SOURCE Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
CONTACT: investor relations, 1-479-273-8446, or Jay Fitzsimmons, 1-479-273-6445, or Pauline Tureman, 1-479-277-9558, or media relations, Marty Heires, 1-479-273-4314, all of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
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