Walmart shares headed toward one of their worst days in recent history Thursday, as the company issued a weaker forecast for 2025 than investors hoped – and the world’s largest company by revenue cautions about the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on consumer prices.
People wait for a Walmart store to open on Black Friday last year.
Walmart stock fell nearly 7% in premarket trading by 8:50 a.m. EST after the company delivered its fourth-quarter earnings report earlier Thursday.
The stock is on track for its steepest daily loss since November 2023 and its eighth-worst day of the last decade, according to FactSet data.
The slide came despite robust Q4 results, as Walmart’s $180.6 billion in sales and $0.66 earnings per share last quarter bested consensus analyst forecasts.
But the retailer’s guidance for its fiscal year ending January 2026 was less optimistic than Wall Street anticipated, as Walmart said it expects full-year sales to grow by 3% to 4% this year, below the roughly 4.1% sales increase projected by analysts and for full-year earnings per share to come in between $2.50 to $2.60, below analyst forecasts of $2.77.
$54 billion. That’s about how much market capitalization Walmart is set to lose when markets open Thursday. Walmart rival Target’s total market value was $60 billion at Wednesday’s close.
“We're wired to try and save people money, so that'll be our ultimate goal,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said about tariffs on a Thursday conference call. The company did not account for tariffs into its full-year forecasts, Walmart CFO John David Rainey told The Wall Street Journal. “We are not immune to what is being suggested, but we’ll work with suppliers,” Rainey told the newspaper. Rainey said in November it’s likely tariffs will result in higher prices at the retailer. Walmart also indicated the dollar’s strengthening since Trump’s election victory may weigh on results, forecasting roughly a 2% impact to profits from foreign currency exchange rates this year.
Walmart, the U.S.’ 10th-largest public company by market cap, is still amidst a strong stock market run. Shares are still up 8% year-to-date and 66% over the last year even with Thursday’s historic pullback. Walmart’s $681 billion revenue and $20.1 billion net profit in its fiscal year ending last month were both records.