Wal-Mart’s prices have bounced from rock-bottom.
The world’s largest retailer — despite trumpeting its low prices as it looks to lure wallet-conscious shoppers during a sluggish economy — has actually raised its prices by nearly 6 percent over the last six weeks, according to a study by JPMorgan Securities.
For example, last month at a Wal-Mart Supercenter in Virginia, the big discounter raised the price on a 32-ounce bottle of Windex household cleaner to $2.97 from $1.97 — an increase of 50 percent.
Meanwhile, the price of a 12-ounce box of Quaker Oats instant grits soared 65 percent, to $3.66, according to the study. A 50-ounce container of Tide detergent jumped more than 50 percent during the past two months.
“It’s too early to tell whether or not Wal-Mart is truly slowing down the aggressiveness of its Rollback campaign,” JPMorgan analyst Charles Grom said in a report to clients yesterday.
Nevertheless, industry sources said the latest price hikes could be a signal that a recent reshuffle of top management at Wal-Mart is bringing unusually swift changes.
Last week, John Fleming resigned as the company’s chief merchant after a decade at the company. Fleming’s departure came a month after Eduardo Castro-Wright left the helm of the company’s US division and was replaced by former operating chief Bill Simon.
Wal-Mart has struggled with middling sales this year despite a lackluster economy that has made shoppers more bargain-conscious. Overly aggressive price cuts have put a damper on revenue as well as profits, according to some critics.
Although Wal-Mart still has lower prices on key groceries and staples compared to mainstream supermarkets, its lead is narrowing — to 10.4 percent last month from 16 percent in June, according to Grom.
What’s more, JPMorgan found that Whole Foods — whose lofty prices in the past have earned it the nickname “Whole Paycheck” — cut its prices by 0.7 percent in July, having dropped 1.8 percent year to date.
Shares of Wal-Mart yesterday rose 27 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $52.06.