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Walmart's (WMT) Wage Hike Depicts Focus on Rewarding Workers
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Walmart Inc. (WMT - Free Report) has been committed toward protecting employees, in terms of health and wellness; safety as well as financially. The company took yet another step in this direction by raising wages of more than 565,000 of its U.S. store employees, per media reports. Sources revealed that employees in Walmart’s frontend, food and consumable as well as general merchandise divisions will get a hike of at least $1 per hour, taking effect from Sep 25.
This marks the supermarket giant’s third wage-related investment over the past year. Industry experts believe that the above-mentioned wage increase due to a tight and competitive labor market in the United States appears to be a prudent step ahead of the major holiday season.
The holiday season is an important selling period for retailers, which accounts for a chunk of their annual sales. Retailers remain focused on making every possible effort to make the most of this busy selling period, including undertaking both online and offline growth strategies. Early store openings, replenished assortments, attractive bargains (both in stores and online) along with upgraded apps are some of the actions many retailers take to encash the crucial holiday opportunity. Also, they take to additional hiring and raising wages to ensure adequate workforce for a smooth holiday experience.
That said, Walmart looks well placed, thanks to robust store and online operations and the company’s constant efforts (like the above-mentioned wage hike) toward its employees. This in turn helps this omnichannel retailer to offer a seamless shopping experience.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Walmart’s Offline & Online Efforts Keep it Going
Walmart has been undertaking several efforts to enhance merchandise assortments. Also, the company has been focused on store remodeling, in an attempt to upgrade them with advanced in-store and digital innovations. It remodeled 187 stores in the second quarter of fiscal 2022. Walmart is gaining from the compelling pricing strategy, which helps it draw customers. The second quarter marked Walmart’s 28th consecutive quarter of U.S. comp sales growth. U.S. comp sales — excluding fuel — improved 5.2% year over year on the back of a 6.1% rise in transactions, mainly driven by in-store performance. E-commerce sales drove comp sales by 20 basis points.
The company’s e-commerce business and omni-channel penetration have expanded all the more amid the pandemic-led social distancing. Walmart has been trying all means to evolve with the changing consumer environment and stay firm amid rising competition from Amazon (AMZN - Free Report) . In this regard, it has been taking several e-commerce initiatives, including buyouts, alliances, and improved delivery and payment systems. The company’s contracts with Symbotic, Goldman Sachs, Shopify (SHOP - Free Report) , Green Dot and Microsoft; along with buyouts of ShoeBuy, Moosejaw and Bonobos, among others, underscore its digital efforts. The buyout of a major stake in Flipkart has been bolstering its International segment.
Apart from this, Walmart has taken robust strides to strengthen its delivery arm, as evident from its investment in DroneUp; piloting of HomeValet, introduction of Carrier Pickup by FedEx, launch of Walmart+ membership program; drone delivery pilots in the United States with Flytrex and Zipline; and piloting of Cruise to test grocery delivery through self-driven all-electric cars. Walmart also unveiled an alliance with DoorDash (DASH - Free Report) in third-quarter fiscal 2021 to deliver prescriptions from pharmacies of Sam’s Club, and expand Scan & Go to all fuel stations at U.S. Sam’s Clubs. Prior to this, the company unveiled Express Delivery during the first quarter of fiscal 2021 at several stores, which helps it deliver orders to customers in less than two hours.
All said, Walmart’s combination of a robust store network and growing digital capacity is likely to keep it in good shape. Shares of the company have increased 5.6% in the past year compared with the industry’s 6.4% growth. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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Walmart's (WMT) Wage Hike Depicts Focus on Rewarding Workers
Walmart Inc. (WMT - Free Report) has been committed toward protecting employees, in terms of health and wellness; safety as well as financially. The company took yet another step in this direction by raising wages of more than 565,000 of its U.S. store employees, per media reports. Sources revealed that employees in Walmart’s frontend, food and consumable as well as general merchandise divisions will get a hike of at least $1 per hour, taking effect from Sep 25.
This marks the supermarket giant’s third wage-related investment over the past year. Industry experts believe that the above-mentioned wage increase due to a tight and competitive labor market in the United States appears to be a prudent step ahead of the major holiday season.
The holiday season is an important selling period for retailers, which accounts for a chunk of their annual sales. Retailers remain focused on making every possible effort to make the most of this busy selling period, including undertaking both online and offline growth strategies. Early store openings, replenished assortments, attractive bargains (both in stores and online) along with upgraded apps are some of the actions many retailers take to encash the crucial holiday opportunity. Also, they take to additional hiring and raising wages to ensure adequate workforce for a smooth holiday experience.
That said, Walmart looks well placed, thanks to robust store and online operations and the company’s constant efforts (like the above-mentioned wage hike) toward its employees. This in turn helps this omnichannel retailer to offer a seamless shopping experience.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Walmart’s Offline & Online Efforts Keep it Going
Walmart has been undertaking several efforts to enhance merchandise assortments. Also, the company has been focused on store remodeling, in an attempt to upgrade them with advanced in-store and digital innovations. It remodeled 187 stores in the second quarter of fiscal 2022. Walmart is gaining from the compelling pricing strategy, which helps it draw customers. The second quarter marked Walmart’s 28th consecutive quarter of U.S. comp sales growth. U.S. comp sales — excluding fuel — improved 5.2% year over year on the back of a 6.1% rise in transactions, mainly driven by in-store performance. E-commerce sales drove comp sales by 20 basis points.
The company’s e-commerce business and omni-channel penetration have expanded all the more amid the pandemic-led social distancing. Walmart has been trying all means to evolve with the changing consumer environment and stay firm amid rising competition from Amazon (AMZN - Free Report) . In this regard, it has been taking several e-commerce initiatives, including buyouts, alliances, and improved delivery and payment systems. The company’s contracts with Symbotic, Goldman Sachs, Shopify (SHOP - Free Report) , Green Dot and Microsoft; along with buyouts of ShoeBuy, Moosejaw and Bonobos, among others, underscore its digital efforts. The buyout of a major stake in Flipkart has been bolstering its International segment.
Apart from this, Walmart has taken robust strides to strengthen its delivery arm, as evident from its investment in DroneUp; piloting of HomeValet, introduction of Carrier Pickup by FedEx, launch of Walmart+ membership program; drone delivery pilots in the United States with Flytrex and Zipline; and piloting of Cruise to test grocery delivery through self-driven all-electric cars. Walmart also unveiled an alliance with DoorDash (DASH - Free Report) in third-quarter fiscal 2021 to deliver prescriptions from pharmacies of Sam’s Club, and expand Scan & Go to all fuel stations at U.S. Sam’s Clubs. Prior to this, the company unveiled Express Delivery during the first quarter of fiscal 2021 at several stores, which helps it deliver orders to customers in less than two hours.
All said, Walmart’s combination of a robust store network and growing digital capacity is likely to keep it in good shape. Shares of the company have increased 5.6% in the past year compared with the industry’s 6.4% growth. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.