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Wal Mart sees five year lows with quarterly profits

Despite reporting its smallest quarterly profit gain since the 2001 recession, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. says it is optimistic about holiday sales. Wal-Mart says net income rose to $2.4 billion, or 57 cents per share in the third quarter, which ended on October 31. A year earlier, it earned $2.3 billion, or 54 cents per share.

The 4 percent profit growth is on par with Wall Street forecasts in a quarter marred by hurricanes that temporarily closed hundreds of stores and sent energy prices soaring. Analysts are pleased that the retailer managed to contain labor costs, something it has struggled with recently.

Wal-Mart`s shares are down about 7 percent year-to-date amid concerns about slowing growth and lawsuits accusing the company of mistreating workers. Shares of the world`s biggest retailer edged up 28 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $49.28 in late-morning New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) trading. By contrast, Target`s stock is up more than 12 percent in that time.