We recently published a list of Top 8 Discount Stores Stocks For 2025. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) stands against other top discount stores stocks for 2025.
When Donald Trump announced tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico, stocks of most of the retail stores went down. The tariffs are likely to increase inflation and hurt the country’s economy if they continue for the duration of Trump’s term.
For investors, it is vital to keep an eye on companies that are either taking a hit on revenue directly through tariffs or losing popularity among consumers in the foreign countries involved. Some companies can take a financial hit better than others. Take for instance a company that makes branded clothing. Such a company can raise the prices of its products and its loyal consumers won’t mind. Now imagine a retail store that sells the same product. When consumers see a 10% rise in the price of the product, they blame the store, not the brand. It is the retail store that loses value in this case and that’s why the tariffs hurt them, even if they aren’t directly exposed to China.
We decided to take a look at 8 discount stores as investments in 2025. To come up with our list of 8 discount stores as investments in 2025, we only considered stocks with a market cap of at least $2 billion.
A manager standing in a hypermarket, pointing out items available for wholesale.
Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)
Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) operates wholesale, retail, and e-commerce businesses throughout the world. It has three main business units; Walmart International, Walmart U.S., and Sam’s Club. An 81% performance in the last year has meant that investors continue to fear high valuations. The stock is trading at all-time highs and even tariffs couldn’t negatively impact the stock.
There is a good chance that most of Walmart’s non-grocery items are sourced from China. Investors consider the company strong enough to withstand the tariffs either by passing the cost on to consumers or by absorbing it. In both cases, there is a short-term and long-term negative impact. It is what it is.
On the other hand, most of the optimism surrounding Walmart (NYSE:WMT) stems from its innovation. The company is building 150 new stores that it dubs ‘Store of the Future’. One of the initiatives includes providing EV fast charging in its parking lots. On the e-commerce front, the use of AI to create personalized shopping experiences will likely help them increase the amount of spending per consumer when on its platform.
The company’s media business Walmart Connect is also growing consistently, up 26% in the third quarter. All these developments mean investors are looking at the advantages of these innovations rather than the impact of tariffs.
Overall, WMT ranks 1st on our list of top discount stores stocks for 2025. While we acknowledge the potential of WMT as a leading AI investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as WMT but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
