Wal Mart more optimistic than at the start of 2021, shares jump

Walmart blew past analysts' forecasts for its first quarter and sounded a confident note on the outlook.

The discount retailer posted quarterly sales of $138.3bn, beating estimates for $132.1bn and the $134.6bn year earlier figure.

That saw it deliver adjusted earnings per share of $1.69, ahead of analysts' estimates for EPS of $1.21.

What's more, the company said it was more optimistic than at the start of 2021, amid encouraging traffic and grocery trends.

The news was pushing its shares 2.69% higher to $142.62 as of 1215 BST.