Whole Foods Market Beats Estimates, Shares Climb 8.6% (WFMI)

Whole Foods Market, Inc. WFMI late on Wednesday released financial results that beat Wall Street expectations. Whole Foods Market, Inc reported that its fiscal 4th quarter net income rose to $57.5 million, or 33 cents per share, up from $36.4 million, or 20 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue climbed 15% to $2.1 billion, up from $1.83 billion a year earlier. A poll of analysts conducted by Thomson Reuters showed an average Wall Street estimate of expected earnings of 28 cents per share, on revenue of $2.07 billion. Co-chief executive officer and co-founder John Mackey said, "Our ability to perform against tougher sales comparisons has continued to surpass our expectations, translating to better-than-expected identical store sales growth of 8.7% in the fourth quarter, an acceleration to 6.4% on a two-year basis. We are proud to be gaining market share at a faster rate than most public food retailers. We attribute much of our success to the progress we have made in our relative price positioning and to our initiatives in areas such as healthy eating, animal welfare and sustainable seafood. These initiatives are aligned with our core customer base and reinforce our position as the authentic retailer of natural and organic foods, further differentiating the Whole Foods Market shopping experience and making us the preferred choice for customers aspiring to a healthier lifestyle." Whole Foods Market, Inc. (WFMI) ended the Wednesday trading session at $41.82 per share, then rose 8.6% to $44.70 during after hours trading. Analysts covering the company's stock have a consensus price target of $41.82 per share. Read more from Benzinga's Company news.