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Walmart IncWMTCOMMENTMay 19, 2025Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Oct 16, 2026. Market Open.
WMT and COST are the dominant discount retailers in the US. They became priced for perfection, with multiples of 40-50x PE for a large, mature company. Might be a great company, but that multiple's for a younger company, growing at very high rates because it can get a lot bigger. Both are in the process of compressing to a 20x PE multiple.
Either earnings are better than expected and stock trends sideways. Or earnings are worse, and multiple goes down. Either way, not much upside.
Both great companies, but both very expensive. COST is over 50x PE, and WMT's in the 40s. Fairly low-margin model. Reliant on the consumer, and everyone's affected when that consumer is struggling.
WMT reported today. Earnings were OK, but projections on future quarters were tough. High fuel prices were highlighted.
Successful transition to e-commerce is why stock's been on fire. Topline growth is only 4-5%, and his team debates this company all the time. PE is 46x earnings for 2026, extremely expensive. Seen as a safe place to park $$ as they continue to execute.
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It would be terrific if Walmart operated as a charity by subsidizing its customers. Problem is retailers have incredibly low profit margins to begin with. Also, they couldn't plan ahead, but nobody knew these tariffs were coming. When they did know, they did their best shifting to sourcing products from countries that had the lowest tariffs. But you can't change your entire supply chain overnight. Given their huge scale, WMT negotiate the best deal with their suppliers, and have tried not to raise prices that much for customers. They will certainly lose money on some products. Walmart should be the last company on Earth to be singled out for profiteering.