Wal-Mart earnings rise 19 percent

BENTONVILLE, Ark. - Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said Tuesday its first-quarter earnings were up 19.4 percent from the same quarter a year ago, beating Wall Street expectations. <br> <br> The world&#39;s biggest retailer earned $1.65 billion, or 37 cents a share, for the three months ending April 30, up from $1.38 billion, or 31 cents a share, a year ago. <br> <br> The latest results beat the consensus forecast of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call by a penny a share. <br> <br> Total sales rose 14.4 percent to $54.96 billion from $48.56 billion a year ago. Sales in stores open at least a year were up 8.1 percent. <br> <br> The increase in same-store sales, a gauge viewed as a good indication of underlying retail health, included an increase of 8.6 percent for Wal-Mart stores and a 5.7 percent rise for the company&#39;s Sam&#39;s Club wholesale stores. <br> <br> ``Our earnings growth exceeded our sales growth and our total shareholder return target,&#39;&#39; Wal-Mart president and chief executive Lee Scott said. ``Further, our return on assets also improved. We are confident our earnings momentum will continue and look forward to reporting another record year in sales and earnings.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> As of April 30, the company had in the United States 1,622 Wal-Mart stores, 1,113 Supercenters, 503 Sam&#39;s Clubs and 31 Neighborhood Markets - the company&#39;s new grocery stores. Internationally, among eight countries and Puerto Rico, the company&#39;s biggest presence remained in Mexico, which has 563 units. In all, Wal-Mart has 1,186 international stores. Wal-Mart has 1.38 million employees domestically and abroad. <br>

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