The Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) share price is edging higher during late afternoon trade. This comes despite the retail conglomerate facing logistical challenges due to the rapid spread of COVID-19.
The news has sent Woolworths shares into positive territory to $38.60, up 1.55%.
COVID-19 creating supply chain dilemmas for Woolworths
Investors appear to be shrugging off the negative news surrounding the supermarket giant, sending Woolworths shares higher today.
A strong rise in COVID-19 cases particularly in the southern states has forced thousands of people to isolate at home. This has led to a severe shortage of workers across many industries such as hospitality, healthcare, and retail.
Notably, Woolworths shelves have been laid bare in popular Sydney stores due to staff obeying stay-at-home orders.
According to insiders, the company is operating on skeleton staff at its distribution centres, resulting in cancelled or delayed deliveries.
While the impact is expected to be temporary, there is no indication of when supply chain operations will return to normal. A spokesperson for Woolworths could not give an indication as to how many workers are currently isolating.
The latest COVID-19 figures have exploded to more than 157,800 active cases in New South Wales and 48,300 cases in Victoria. This is a sharp increase from this time last year when the country had been effectively managing the pandemic.
Adding more pain is reportedly the long wait times to get tested for COVID, with some people waiting up to 5 hours.
Woolworths share price review
It's been a sound 12 months for Woolworths shares, posting a gain of almost 10% for the period.
The company's shares proved their resilience against COVID-19, reaching an all-time high of $42.66 in mid-August.
Based on today's price, Woolworths commands a market capitalisation of roughly $46.82 billion and has approximately 1.21 billion shares outstanding.
