CHICAGO – Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) on Thursday confirmed that its June sales rose 4.5 percent at U.S. stores open at least a year, beating its forecast, and said the current analyst estimate for second-quarter profit was "reasonable."
The world's biggest retailer said total sales for the five weeks ended July 1 rose 11.2 percent to $29.99 billion.
The company had forecast a 2 percent to 4 percent increase in June sales at stores open at least a year, also known as same-store sales, but Wal-Mart on Saturday estimated that same-store sales actually rose 4.5 percent.
The 4.5 percent increase marked Wal-Mart's biggest monthly gain since May 2004.
On a recorded message detailing its sales performance, Wal-Mart said both store traffic and average ticket — or the amount spent per transaction — were up in the month, with average ticket responsible for 75 percent of the sales increase.
The retailer said it expects a 3 percent to 5 percent increase in July same-store sales.
"We believe analysts' current earnings per share consensus estimate of 65 cents for the second fiscal quarter is reasonable and within our previously stated guidance of 63 cents to 67 cents," Tom Schoewe, chief financial officer, said in a news release.
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