The state of retail in one eye-popping earnings growth chart
Unsurprisingly, analysts weren't exactly thrilled.
In fact, they basically hacked down their profit forecasts for the entire "Hypermarkets & Super Centers" industry following that announcement.
"As a result of the guidance from Walmart, the sub-industry is now projected to report a decline in earnings in CY 2016 of 5.5%, compared to an expectation of earnings growth of 3.1% last Friday [October 9]," FactSet's John Butters wrote on Friday.
Importantly, it's just the Hypermarkets & Super Centers sub-industry that recorded a significant change in expected earnings growth over the past week. Not the entire retail industry.
"Thus, it appears retail analysts either believe the causes of the lower guidance from Walmart are unique to Walmart, or they are waiting to hear more guidance from other retailers before revising their earnings estimates for CY 2016," Butters suggested.
In any case, check out Butters' dismal chart, which is all the more when you consider the earnings growth in Internet retail, the low-cost bane of brick-and-mortar retailers like Walmart.
