Another Wallop From Wal-Mart

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Another day, another buck. Well, another few billion bucks if you happen to be Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT). With apologies to Mel Brooks, the world's biggest retailer proves over and over again that "it's good to be da king."

Today's first-quarter earning release flaunts more record earnings, continuing the same incredible run turned in last year. As W.D. Crotty said then, double-digit revenue and earnings increases are unbelievable in a company that's already as huge as this one. For this quarter, the revenue upswing was 14.2% over last year's Q1, and earnings per share reached $0.50, a 22% advance.

How does the company keep doing it? Well, little things like a 0.06% improvement in gross margin certainly don't hurt. Doesn't sound like much? Well, multiplied by the quarter's $64.8 billion in sales, that fraction of a percentage means a lot more profit.

Even someone like me, who's more than a bit skeptical of Wal-Mart's social and political fallout, can't help but be amazed at results like these.

The headlines today are going to trumpet CEO Lee Scott's remarks about inflation, and this only adds to the dissonant chorus of worrywarts who scream that the sky is about to fall. Wal-Mart investors may be among those who can safely ignore this warning.

Not only is inflation likely to push shoppers to discounters like this one, as well as Target (NYSE: TGT) and Costco (Nasdaq: COST), Wal-Mart's fast-growing international presence should provide some degree of cushion against domestic shocks.

Evil ogre or your ticket to a golden retirement? Talk it over in the Fool's Wal-Mart board.

Fool contributor Seth Jayson has given up shopping at his local Wal-Mart, but he can't deny himself a periodic trip to Sam's Club. He has no stake in any firm mentioned. View his Fool profile here.