Wal-Mart stores- the highest profit maker in retail

Wal-Mart Stores Inc NYSE WMT 12:00 AM ET 8/14/09
Last: 51.79 Change: -0.09 %Change: -0.17% Volume: 17,238,900
Open: 51.87 P/E Ratio: 15.32


High: 52.25 EPS: 3.38
Low: 51.54 Ex Date: 12/9/2009
Bid: 51.83 Dividend: 0.27
Ask: 51.82 Shares Out: 3.9 B
Yield: 2.10% Market Cap: 201.8 B
52wk High: 63.85 52wk Low: 46.25 Avg Volume: 22.1 M

In the middle of the tough retailing environment, slower consumer spending and lower revenues did not stop the world’s largest retailer from boosting profits.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. reported second-quarter net income of $3.45 billion, up from $3.4 billion one year ago. Revenue for the Bentonville-based retail giant slipped 1.4 percent compared to last year’s $100.08 billion. U.S. sales accounted for nearly two-thirds of the company’s revenue and same-stores sales rose 1.5 percent.

Wal-Mart officials say they are focused on “accelerating” expense reductions, but they only predicted future same-store sales in the zero to two percent range.

Oil prices goes higher

Oil prices were higher on Monday, lifted by rising global equities and positive data that suggested the worst may be over for the crisis-hit US housing market, analysts said.

New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in August, gained 32 cents to 63.88 dollars a barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for September delivery climbed 50 cents to 65.88 dollars.

US stocks opened higher Monday, building on last week's powerful rally on reports that huge business lender CIT Group had found private financing to avert bankruptcy. European shares rallied Monday after gains in Asia.

US media reported Monday that business lending giant CIT Group, which provides capital for small- and mid-sized businesses, has negotiated an agreement worth 3.0 billion dollars with its bondholders to avoid bankruptcy.

Oil soared last week as traders welcomed encouraging US data and earnings reports that could boost the recession-mired American economy -- which is the world's top energy consumer.

Retailing In India

Retail sector is a chain system, which consists of the sale of goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store or kiosk, or by post, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. This sector directly depends on the consumers choice and their needs which creates a chain; from company stock store to state stock/local stock store to the whole sellers and from wholesellers to consumers or from wholesellers to distributors to dealers then to consumers.
In short it is a bussiness that buy goods at one price ( term it as wholesale rate ) and sell them to consumers adding some profit with the basic price. The Retail sector in India has been at high for last a year or two…The huge Indian middle class consumer are now the blue eyed segment for biggies like Bharti, Wal-Mart, Reliance and loads of others, in race to capture their pie in Indian Retail Market. Now India is slowly becoming the center of attraction for retail backened IT support global giants. Big fat companies now not only trying to capture the city but also the urban and suburbans with big banners and spending hundreds and thousands to attract them as the big part of the profit bussiness comes from them.