Walmart, which operates more than 400 stores in China, did not include the potential impact of coronavirus in its forecast for the year because of uncertainty over how it will play out over the next year.
But executives believe the disruption is likely to shave a few pennies off earnings per share in the current quarter.
One plus point: Walmart emphasized that two-thirds of the items it sells — mostly food — are sourced from the U.S. The remainder comes from a variety of countries like Mexico, China and other regions of Asia.
Walmart and Target have stood out among retailers, having ramped up deliveries and other conveniences for customers, but Target Corp. also struggled during the holiday due to weak sales of toys and electronics.
Separately, Walmart approved a cash dividend for fiscal year 2021 of US$2.16 per share, an increase from the US$2.12 per share last year. The company will pay the dividend in quarterly installments of 54 US cents per share.
Walmart Inc. expects annual per-share earnings of between US$5 and US$5.15, short of the US$5.21 that industry analysts had projected.-AP
