Walmart Shares Drop 8% After 2.6% Comp Sales Miss Despite $2.9 Billion Tariff Refund
Updated
Updated · Yahoo Finance · Aug 20
Walmart Shares Drop 8% After 2.6% Comp Sales Miss Despite $2.9 Billion Tariff Refund
3 articles · Updated · Yahoo Finance · Aug 20
Summary
Walmart fell more than 8% after quarterly comparable sales rose 2.6%, missing Wall Street expectations of about 3.5% despite beats on revenue and adjusted earnings.
The $2.9 billion tariff refund lifted gross margin to 25.4%, but investors largely stripped out the one-time benefit and focused on weaker underlying store traffic and sales momentum.
Target got the opposite reaction a day earlier: its $994 million refund also boosted results, yet comparable sales of 3.8% topped the 2.4% estimate and adjusted EPS still beat forecasts without the windfall.
That contrast reinforced a broader market view that, after the Supreme Court's February ruling against IEEPA tariffs triggered refunds across retail, investors are grading core demand rather than rebate-driven earnings.