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Walmart's finances, and what holding WMT would have done

Walmart's revenue, profit, cash flow and debt from SEC filings, and what holding WMT would have done in the past.

By Tickfloor · 3 min read
A Walmart Supercenter store front and car park under a blue sky
Photo: Winnebaggo via Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Walmart (WMT) was the number 12 US company by market value on 5 November 2026, at about $1.0 trillion, on the companiesmarketcap.com ranking. Its figures come from its SEC filings, read on 5 November 2026. A figure a filing lacks is marked as not reported.

What Walmart sells

Walmart runs large discount stores and warehouse clubs (Sam's Club) and a big online business, selling groceries, clothes and household goods. It also earns money from advertising and from marketplace sellers.

The finances

  • Revenue: $706 billion in the year to 31 January 2026 (10-K), up 4.7% from $675 billion. The 12 months to 31 July 2026: $728 billion. Growth was slow.
  • Net income: $21.9 billion in the year to 31 January 2026 (10-K), against $19.4 billion a year earlier; net margin 3.1%. The 12 months to 31 July 2026: $22.1 billion. Under $5 of every $100 of sales stayed as profit, a thin margin.
  • Free cash flow: $14.9 billion in the year to 31 January 2026 (10-K), which is $41.6 billion of operating cash flow minus $26.6 billion of capital spending. The 12 months to 31 July 2026: $13.5 billion. That is the cash left after running and equipping the business.
  • Cash and debt: $11.5 billion in cash and $50.4 billion of debt (10-Q, 31 July 2026). Debt was several times its cash.
  • Share count: 8.02 billion average diluted shares in the year to 31 January 2026 (10-K), down 0.7% from 8.08 billion. Fewer shares, usually from buybacks, make each one a bigger slice.

One thing to notice: Net margin was about 3%, which is normal for a supermarket-style business that wins on low prices and large volume. It spent $26.6 billion on equipment and buildings against $41.6 billion of operating cash flow.

What holding it would have done

From our free long-term checker, which looks back only:

  • Past returns, price only: 1-year +23% (SPY +10%), 3-year +127% (SPY +74%), 5-year +149% (SPY +62%), 10-year +425% (SPY +248%). That 10-year gain is 18.1% a year, against 13.3% for SPY.
  • Worst fall: -26.0%, from the close on 21 April 2022 to the low on 17 June 2022 (57 days). Getting back to that high took another 406 days, to 28 July 2023. SPY's worst fall was -34.1%.
  • How often holding ended higher: 86% of 1-year holds (worst -16%) and 100% of 5-year holds (worst +31%).
  • Monthly buying against a lump sum: over the past 10 years, $100 a month ($12,100 in total) would have grown to $33,935. The same money in on day one would have grown to $63,488; in SPY, monthly buying ends at $24,571 and the lump sum at $42,078.

Price only: no dividends, fees or tax. Daily closes, 10 November 2016 to 3 November 2026. SPY is an S&P 500 fund.

What this does and does not tell you

The finances say how the business did. The long test says how the share price did. They are different things, and neither says what comes next. A good business can still be a poor buy at a high price.

This is one company over one stretch of history: an in-sample look at the past, not a promise. It is general information, not a call to buy or sell WMT, and it sets no price target.

More

The other 24 are in The 25 biggest US stocks. To check any other stock, use the long-term checker.

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