Earnings from Walmart and Target Will Be Key Measures of U.S. Consumer Health | Global News Avenue

Walmart and Target will report earnings next week, providing new insights into how consumers are doing shortly after retail sales data showed Americans spending more on “fun” categories.

The two chains are just two of the retailers that are about to report their latest quarterly results and could update their outlook ahead of the holidays. Walmart (WMT) and target (TGTTheir combined U.S. sales in recent quarters are about $140 billion, according to Visible Alpha estimates, and Wall Street expects their holiday quarter revenue to total more than $470 billion.

The update is needed as analysts say fewer consumers are undecided. October retail sales Wells Fargo economists wrote on Friday after the Commerce Department reported the latest data, up 0.4% from September, when core spending surged at the fastest monthly pace since January 2023.

“Makes the horse dizzy,” they wrote. “An otherwise bleak year for retailers gained some last-minute momentum as holiday sales kicked off.” B

Walmart plans to turn over the data before the market opens on Tuesday. Retailer estimate it serves With 255 million weekly customers, its leaders detailed their changing shopping habits on last quarter’s conference call: Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said at the time Higher-income consumers have flocked to the company for its Walmart+ membership program and delivery service, while executives also pointed to growing demand for private brands, especially in food.

Target’s third-quarter conference call is scheduled for Wednesday morning. minneapolis based brand say it saw 30 million people every week. On the last earnings call, CEO Brian Cornell told investors Shoppers again felt more comfortable spending on discretionary items, noting that apparel sales increased for the first time in more than a year.

Additional reports due next week may provide more context. TJX Limited (Tian Jiaxing), which owns TJ Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods, is scheduled to release results Wednesday morning. Ross Store (Rost) Planned release The report was released Thursday afternoon.

As holidays approach, consumers are ‘average’

Americans spent more last month, with 8 of 13 retail categories posting growth Department of Commerce data. Wells Fargo noted that as price increases slowed, people were able to put more money into electronics, restaurants and other “fun” categories: Grocery bills, for example, rose 0.1% from September to October.

The National Retail Federation said lower energy prices freed up some money among Americans, paving the way for “healthy” retail sales throughout the holidays.

Still, shoppers are dealing with inflation. As of October, the consumer price index rose 2.6%, and rose 0.2% from September to October. Match monthly inflation rate Since July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said.

Economists at Wells Fargo said this leaves consumers in a “pretty average position” during the gift-giving season. They expect holiday sales – retail spending excluding cars, gas and restaurant bills – to rise 3.3% by the end of the year. Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist at LPL Financial, described consumers as “resilient” in emailed comments Friday.

“While broader spending continues to be strong, the retailers we include in our holiday sales measures are seeing very slow sales growth,” Wells Fargo wrote. “We are still likely to see the slowest annual sales growth since before the pandemic. ”