Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT – Analyst Report) is a multinational retailer that runs large department stores and warehouse store chains. The company has more than 11,500 stores in 28 countries.

Of late, Wal-Mart is delivering positive comps at Wal-Mart U.S., after delivering negative comps since the third quarter of fiscal 2013. This is the result of lower fuel prices, which eased consumers’ spending power. However, the company has been facing huge expense burden of late. Huge investments in e-commerce initiatives, higher wages and training costs increased expenses. Lower Wal-Mart U.S. margins due to headwinds from pharmacy reimbursements and ongoing shrink is also dampening operating income. This along with unfavorable currency is taking a toll on the results. Given these factors, investors were eagerly waiting for the company’s latest earnings report.

This is especially true given the recent earnings estimate revisions for WMT as the consensus estimate has been going downwards. Further, WMT has a mixed earnings history. WMT has delivered positive earnings surprise in two of the last four quarters, negative surprise in one and in-line estimates in the remaining one quarter, making for an average positive surprise of 1.79%.

Currently, WMT has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), but that could definitely change following Wal-Mart’s earnings report which was just released. We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just-revealed announcement below:

Earnings:WMT posted earnings of $1.49 per share, beating our consensus of $1.46. Investors should note that these figures take out stock option expenses.

Revenue:WMT posted revenues of $129.7 billion. This slightly missed our consensus estimate of $130.4 billion.

Key Stats to Note: Wal-Mart U.S. comparable store sales increased 0.6% in the fourth quarter, driven by 0.7% growth in traffic. Comp sales however decreased 0.5% at the Sam’s Club, without the impact of fuel, due to a 1.4% decline in traffic.