Walmart Q2 results blow passed estimates, as E-commerce sales jump 97%

Walmart’s e-commerce sales in the U.S. shot up by 97% as customers had packages shipped their homes and used curbside pick-up. CNBC's Bertha Coombs reports. For access to live and exclusive video from CNBC subscribe to CNBC PRO: https://cnb.cx/2NGeIvi

Walmart posted its biggest earnings surprise in 31 years Tuesday as shoppers rushed in to spend their stimulus checks, and online sales nearly doubled during the coronavirus pandemic.

The discount retailer has been leveraging its massive store base and the investments it’s made in e-commerce to supply customers with food and other goods during the pandemic. U.S. same-store sales climbed 9.3% in the fiscal second quarter, while U.S. e-commerce sales surged 97%, as more customers shipped packages to their homes and used same-day delivery and curbside pickup.

Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said the company will look to build on these gains by adding a membership service. He did not say when that would launch or provide details about its perks. He said the program will speed up deliveries for customers through curbside pickup and delivery, strengthen relationships with them and collect valuable data.

The program, called Walmart+, is expected to compete with Amazon Prime.

Shares reached a 52-week high of $137.63 on Tuesday, but were down less than 1% by early afternoon.

On a call with investors Tuesday, Walmart executives said customers shopped online and in stores for a wide variety of items, including groceries, TVs, computers, fishing poles and bicycles. Yet they acknowledged the company struggled to keep many of those products in stock.

McMillon said managing supply chain remains a challenge, but its performance is improving.

» Subscribe to CNBC TV: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCtelevision
» Subscribe to CNBC: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBC
» Subscribe to CNBC Classic: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCclassic

Turn to CNBC TV for the latest stock market news and analysis. From market futures to live price updates CNBC is the leader in business news worldwide.

Connect with CNBC News Online
Get the latest news: http://www.cnbc.com/
Follow CNBC on LinkedIn: https://cnb.cx/LinkedInCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Facebook: https://cnb.cx/LikeCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Twitter: https://cnb.cx/FollowCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Instagram: https://cnb.cx/InstagramCNBC

For info on the best credit cards go to CNBC Select:
https://www.cnbc.com/select/best-credit-cards/

#CNBC
#CNBCTV