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Walmart (NYSE: WMT) is currently the second-best-performing investment in the Dow Jones Industrial Average for 2024, achieving significant growth even amid stiff competition in the retail sector.
In the third quarter of 2024, Walmart reported a 3% increase in shopper traffic compared to the previous year, outpacing Target‘s 2.4% increase. The company’s e-commerce sales surpassed $100 billion annually, growing at a rate of 27%. Additionally, Walmart’s operating earnings rose by 9% over the past nine months, benefiting from improved cash flow and profitability, driven in part by digital advertising and inventory management.
Walmart’s stock is currently valued at 1.1 times revenue, higher than its historical average of 0.6 times but lower than Costco Wholesale, which is valued at 1.7 times sales. The company has returned $4.6 billion through stock buybacks over the last four quarters, while also increasing its dividend for 51 consecutive years.
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