CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Tuesday tried to make sense of the declines in Home Depot and Walmart shares after the retail juggernauts posted third-quarter results that topped Wall Street estimates.
Wall Street received a “pair of stellar quarters from Home Depot and Walmart … some of the best numbers I have ever seen,” the “Mad Money” host said.
After reporting numbers before the stock market opened for trading, their stocks fell more than 2% by the close, harder than the less than 1% drops in both the Dow Jones and S&P 500, two indexes Home Depot and Walmart trade on.
Walmart reported earning $1.34 per share, beating forecasts by 16 cents, and producing $134.7 billion in revenues, including a 79% year-over-year increase in its online business. Home Depot said it earned $3.18 per share, 12 cents higher than expectations, and brought in $33.54 billion on the top line, powered by a same-store sales increase of 24%.
Yet, their stocks pulled back anyway. Walmart broke a five-day win streak, falling about 3 points from its record close on Monday. Home Depot shares have traded on a downward trend over the past three months and are now 20 points away from its August highs.
“The vaccine is a headwind for them. There’s no way Home Depot or Walmart can keep delivering this kind of growth once the world goes back to normal,” Cramer said, pointing out the effects that positive news about the vaccine research going on at Moderna and Pfizer have had on the market and investor sentiment about the future.
“You take away the stay-at-home economy and these two stories become a lot less attractive,” he added.
“Maybe some of us will be so enamored with Walmart’s digital offering that we will never ever go back to a brick-and-mortar store again, but I bet most people can’t wait to shop normally,” he continued.
“As for Home Depot, I’m sure some people will keep fleeing from the cities to the suburbs, but once the vaccine is everywhere, maybe that changes the incentives,” he said.
Disclosure: Cramer’s charitable trust owns shares of Home Depot and Walmart.
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