Barclays Maintains its Rating and PT for Wal-Mart Stores

In a report released by Barclays Friday it reiterated its Overweight rating of Wal-Mart Stores

while maintaining its price target. Barclays went on to say that "Walmart U.S. had positive comps for the fourth consecutive quarter. Comps increased 2.2%, driven by a 0.4% increase in traffic and a 1.8% increase in ticket. Comps were positive across the major geographic regions and different store formats. Price leadership continued to drive strong results, as the company noted a continued pronounced paycheck cycle in the U.S. Gross margin in the U.S. was down (20) basis points due to investment in price. Most categories performed well in the quarter, with apparel posting another quarter of positive comps. Entertainment comps declined due to challenging industry dynamics in media and gaming. Looking ahead, we believe Walmart is off to a good start for Back-to-School, with season-to-date performance in Back-to-School apparel up 7%. We expect U.S. comps in 3Q12 to be up 1%-3%." Wal-Mart Stores traded around $72 Friday