Retail giant Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT) could provide an in-depth look at consumer spending and the impact of tariffs when the company reports third-quarter financial results Thursday before market open.
• WMT is showing upward bias. Find out why here.
Here are the earnings estimates, what analysts are saying ahead of the report and the key items to watch.
Earnings Estimates: Analysts expect Walmart to report third-quarter revenue of $177.41 billion, up from $169.59 billion in last year's third quarter, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
The retailer has beaten analyst estimates for revenue in nine of the past 10 quarters, while missing estimates in the most recently reported second quarter.
Analysts expect Walmart to report third-quarter earnings per share of 60 cents per share, up from 58 cents per share in past year's third quarter.
The company has beaten analyst estimates for earnings per share in eight of the past 10 quarters overall.
Prior to the recent second quarter, the company had seven straight double beats, with revenue and earnings per share both beating analyst estimates.
Guidance from the company calls for third-quarter revenue in a range of $175.95 billion to $177.64 billion and earnings per share in a range of 58 to 60 cents per share.
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What Analysts Are Saying: A battle between bulls and bears could be brewing over Walmart stock, Bank of America analyst Robert F. Ohmes said in a new investor note.
The analyst maintained a Buy rating with a price target of $125.
Ohmes said the bull argument for Walmart includes market share gains in product categories and income levels, the retailer growing its AI commerce segment, gross margin expansion with ancillary businesses and successfully managing tariffs.
The bear case from the analyst says the retailer faces tough comparables, AI commerce could be slow to get adoption from consumers, headwinds in grocery and a high valuation for the stock. The analyst notes that the stock trades at around 35 times earnings, which is around a 20-year high.
"We reaffirm Buy on WMT as share gains continue across product categories and incomes while long-term profitability also continues to improve. We see WMT well-positioned to win in ecom as its value and convenience resonate," Ohmes said.
The analyst said the high valuation and tough comparables could "limit potential for upward stock price momentum" compared to retail peers.
Here are other recent analyst ratings on Walmart and their price targets:
- Telsey: Maintained Outperform rating, with price target of $118
- Wells Fargo: Maintained Overweight rating, raised price target from $108 to $110
- JPMorgan: Maintained Overweight rating, raised price target from $127 to $128
- RBC Capital: Maintained Outperform rating, raised price target from $106 to $116
Key Items to Watch: The earnings report from Walmart comes after the retailer recently announced CEO Douglas McMillon will step down from the top role in January 2026.
Replacing McMillon as CEO will be John R. Furner, who leads Walmart U.S. and has worked for the retailer in various roles since 1993.
Walmart will also report financial results after peer and rival Target Corp (NYSE:TGT) reports third-quarter results on Wednesday. That report could signal some trends for investors to watch for in Walmart's report and could also indicate if Target is losing market share, potentially to Walmart.
A Placer.ai report showed Walmart having 0.4% year-over-year traffic growth in the third quarter, compared to a 2.7% year-over-year decline in traffic for Target.
Walmart outpaced Target in July, August and September. The retailer also showed a strong 3.5% gain in October, which could factor into forward guidance for the fourth quarter.
The retailer raised its annual outlook for earnings per share and revenue after the second quarter. The company reported strong comparable sales growth and increases in average ticket size.
Analysts and investors will be closely watching guidance and any change to this raised guidance from last quarter.
Tariffs aren't as big of a national topic in earnings reports as they were earlier this year, but Walmart could report on the impact in the third quarter and in its guidance. McMillon previously warned that tariff-related costs could rise further in the third and fourth quarters.
WMT Price Action: Walmart stock closed down 1.52% to $101.39 on Tuesday versus a 52-week trading range of $79.81 to $109.58. Walmart shares are up 12.7% year-to-date in 2025.
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