Walmart

If there was a bright spot to Walmart’s fourth-quarter results it was the international division where sales increased in every country, expansion surged and operating profits increased 9.7% to $5.4 billion on sales that increased 7.6% to $104.8 billion. Those results are on a constant currency basis that assumes foreign exchanges rates are consistent year over year and present a more accurate view of country-by-country performance.

It’s looking like Walmart could be in for an eighth consecutive quarter of declining same-store sales, judging from the company’s first-quarter forecast, which contemplates the impact of internal and external forces on results. Official guidance calls for comps to be flat or decline 2% despite an easy comparison against the prior-year first quarter when comps declined 1.4%.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart said it will present more than $1.5 million to nonprofits in six U.S. communities, thanks to Facebook users' help with the retailer's commitment to fight hunger through 2015.

Walmart's Fighting Hunger Together campaign called on Facebook users to go to Walmart.com/fighthunger and "like" one of the 100 hungriest communities in the United States, as ranked by the Food Research and Action Center. More than 10 million votes were cast during the campaign, which ran from Nov. 15 through Dec. 31.

There’s no way to sugarcoat the 1.8% same-store sales decline produced by Walmart’s U.S. stores division during the fourth quarter, especially after management vowed last fall that comps would turn positive during the period and end six quarters of negative results.

Everyone has an opinion on Walmart, especially given the subpar performance of the U.S. stores division. The search for answers makes for some interesting conversations such as the one that took place earlier this week on the financial news network CNBC. Click here to watch. 

Analysts don’t like surprises, especially the negative kind, where results are worse than forecast, so there wasn’t a lot of love for Walmart earlier this week after the company reported a disappointing 1.8% fourth quarter comp decline. Never mind that earnings per share exceeded consensus estimate by three cents, analysts were clearly peeved by the top line shortfall at the stores division, and having been burned by the company’s earlier guidance expressed little confidence in the company’s ability to deliver on its strategic objectives.

During Walmart’s fourth-quarter conference call, Walmart U.S. president and CEO Bill Simon said the company will pursue a four-point plan to improve its performance in existing stores. The first order of business -- and something Simon has talked about since he was appointed to his current position last summer -- is a renewed emphasis on everyday low prices, or EDLP.

Providence, R.I. -- DijiPOP, a leading provider of on-demand digital shopper marketing technology solutions, announced that Walmart Canada has selected the company to power the digital shelf space monetization efforts of its rapidly growing Walmart.ca online property.

As a complement to Walmart Canada’s current advertiser program, DiJiPOP’s technology will integrate deeply with Walmart Canada’s existing proprietary vendor portal, allowing Walmart.ca vendors to reserve premium shelf space.