Some Wal-Mart earnings numbers that I could find. Wal-Mart WAS making money when they were public in 1970. Are accounting standards similar enough to make comparisons with AMZN? Are the start-up costs and early growth similar enough to make comparison's with WMT? Are Information Technology and Distribution Center development costs that significantly similar to WMT's brick and mortar start up costs or is AMZN trying to catch up to WMT where WMT made such investments much later in its corporate life, out of operating earnings in the 1980s and 1990s?
Year, Sales, Profits, Stores
1960, $ 1.4 million, $ 112,000, 9
1970, $32 million ,$1.2 million, 32
1980, $1.2 billion, $41 million, 276
1990, $26 billion, $1 billion, 1,528
1994, $67 billion, $2.3 billion, 2,136 |
