6/26

Walmart says it is making progress in forward deploying product to customer-facing rather than other shelves.  In a teleconference with investors and analysts, CEO Douglas McMillon said:

We continued to make progress in managing inventory. Overall inventory grew 0.9 percent, or approximately 25 percent the rate of total sales growth. Comp store inventory declined 2.9 percent, as we remained focused on cleaning up our backrooms and using processes such as CAP and top-stock to ensure better in-stocks for our customers. Inventory will remain a key focus area for us in this new fiscal year. 

The Wall Street Journal explains:

Wal-Mart has been trying to gain better control of its sprawling supply chain, in an effort to ensure more goods are put before consumers on store shelves, rather than gathering dust and racking up costs in warehouses. The latest numbers indicate the retailer is succeeding, though that may be small consolation if sales don’t pick up.