Word: walmarts
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...Walmart, the world's largest retailer, has seen better days. Yes, profits rose 22%, to $4.63 billion, in the fourth quarter of '09. Even coming out of the Great Recession, many consumers are trading down to shop at the discount superstore. However, for the third straight quarter the store saw negative same-store sales growth; during the last three months of 2009, same-store sales dropped 2%. Overall traffic in Walmart stores was down too. To Walmart executives and investors, this disturbing trend has to be reversed; despite the earnings growth, Walmart's stock fell 1.1% on the day earnings...
...what's going on? First off, food deflation in 2009 impacted the entire grocery business. However, a strategic shift from Walmart backfired a bit. In order to implement its "Project Impact" plan, which called for less clutter in the aisles and more space given to other product categories like toys and electronics, the store offered a narrower selection of brands and package sizes in its grocery section, which accounted for some 45% of its store space. This move had a two-pronged effect. Some shoppers, faced with a less robust grocery selection from Walmart, decided to make an extra trip...
...example, Flickinger's research shows that at a group of WinCo Foods stores in California, the Western grocery chain carried 34 different sizes of detergent brands like Sun, Arm & Hammer, Surf and Gain. Neighboring Walmarts only carried 10 of these sizes. Further, of the 10 brand packages both stores sold, WinCo was cheaper on five of them. Two carried the same price, and Walmart offered better prices on three of the detergent packages. Of the 32 different sizes of Kellogg's cereal brands offered by WinCo, Walmart carried just seven. Of the brands both stores sold, WinCo was cheaper...
...course, Walmart won't get pounded on price for long. "The time has finally arrived!" Weinswig wrote in a research note. "WMT [Walmart's stock symbol] is lacing up the gloves in the fight to win the modern day price war in food retail in 2010." Weinswig found that a 2-liter bottle of Coca-Cola, which recently cost the consumer $1.58 at a New York City-area Walmart, was now selling at the same store for 98 cents. "You're not going to ignore that," says Weinswig. "That's 'wow' pricing, and you'll think twice about going somewhere...
...company will also return some 300 discontinued items to the shelves, giving the shopper more choice as well. With this aggressive strategy, and upgrades to the shopping experience provided by Project Impact, Weinswig believes Walmart is positioned for a big year: on March 14, she upgraded the stock from hold to buy, and set a price target of $65 per share (after the close of business on March 17, Walmart was trading at $55.92 per share). The company's plan also indicates that a significant swath of American consumers are still hunting for value in the economic rebound, and many...