research report · WMT

Walmart Inc.

Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c. 1664, detail · National Gallery of Art

Viridis’s deep research report, written Nov 1, 2026 from its quarterly report (10-Q for the quarter ended Jul 31, 2026, filed Aug 28, 2026). Written and checked with Anthropic’s Claude models.

your email, no card; what you get

business trajectory

Improving

better on balance: sales, margins, cash or competitive position

financial resilience

Strong

can meet its obligations and fund its plan for two years with money it can count on, with room

Judgments of the business from its filings, not of its shares: no valuation, no advice.

bottom line

Walmart is getting modestly stronger, but the second quarter overstates it. Operating income rose 28.8% to $9.38B, largely on about $2.9B of one-time tariff refunds. Management guides third-quarter adjusted operating-income growth of just 2%–4% as that money goes into lower prices. Underneath, sales grew 5.1% in constant currency, advertising and membership income kept compounding, and full-year guidance rose despite more than $2B of unplanned fuel costs. The soft spots are slowing U.S. store demand, and buybacks plus capital spending that outran free cash flow and were funded with debt.

what changed this quarter

  • Revenue was $187.9B, up 5.9% (5.1% excluding currency moves). Walmart U.S. comparable sales rose 2.6%, against 4.6% a year earlier. Global eCommerce grew 23%.
  • Operating income was $9,383M versus $7,286M, including about $2.9B of tariff refunds booked as lower cost of sales. Adjusted constant-currency operating income rose 17.4%.
  • Diluted EPS was $0.80 versus $0.88, after a $1.2B investment loss and a tax benefit. Adjusted EPS was $0.81 versus $0.68.
  • FY27 guidance was raised:
  • constant-currency sales growth of 4.0–5.0% (was 3.5–4.5%);
  • adjusted operating income growth of 7.0–8.5% (was 6.0–8.0%);
  • adjusted EPS of $2.80–2.87 (was $2.75–2.85);
  • capital spending of about 4.0% of sales (was about 3.5%).
  • First-half free cash flow was $5.5B, down $1.4B. Short-term borrowings reached $10.5B, versus $6.6B at January 31.

in the full report

Its findings, each with the evidence, the strongest counterpoint and what would prove it wrong:

  • Q2's profit surge rests on a one-time refund; the underlying pace is far lower
  • Advertising and membership are lifting the earnings mix, but only partly visibly
  • U.S. demand beneath the headline is softening
  • Spending and buybacks outran free cash flow, and the gap was borrowed

Then its finances, the quality of its earnings, its management, the case for and against, and what to watch, its claims cited to the filings and checked against them.

read it whole

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