Walmart Says It Received $2.9 Billion in Tariff Refunds as US Sales Growth Slows to Weakest Pace Since 2020
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The Facts
- Walmart said it has received substantially all of the approximately $2.9 billion in US tariff refunds it was eligible for.
- Walmart said it is directing the tariff refund money into lower prices and customer experience investments.
- Walmart's US comparable sales rose 2.6% in the quarter, below Wall Street forecasts of roughly 3.5% to 3.8%.
- That was Walmart's slowest US comparable sales growth since 2020, according to the company and analysts.
- Walmart posted quarterly revenue of $187.9 billion, up 5.9%, and adjusted earnings per share of $0.81.
- Walmart raised its full-year fiscal 2027 guidance for sales and adjusted earnings.
- Walmart shares fell between roughly 7% and 9% on Thursday following the report.
- CFO John David Rainey attributed weaker consumer spending to higher fuel prices prompting shopper trade-offs.
- Analysts and outlets described the results as raising questions about the strength of US consumer spending.
- Walmart's global e-commerce sales grew 23% in the quarter, outpacing its physical store performance.
Context
Why is Walmart receiving tariff refunds from the government?
The refunds stem from duties Walmart paid on imports after President Trump imposed a wave of tariffs, which were later ruled unlawful; retailers are now being reimbursed by the federal government BBC. Walmart's refund covers tariffs paid during 2025 and early 2026 and is the largest such refund reported by a major US company so far Hindustan Times,Yahoo! Finance. Rival retailer Target has said it received about $1 billion in rebates BBC.
If Walmart beat earnings estimates, why did the stock fall?
Investors focused on the 2.6% US comparable sales growth, which missed forecasts of roughly 3.5% to 3.8%, and on third-quarter earnings guidance of $0.62 to $0.64 that came in below consensus Investing.com,CNBC,Yahoo! Finance. Mizuho analyst David Bellinger called the comparable sales result "one of the biggest misses in years" CNBC.
What else weighed on Walmart's sales figures besides consumer pullback?
Walmart said its pharmacy business was a drag, citing maximum fair price legislation that allows Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices Yahoo! Finance,Yahoo! Finance. The company reported a 0.8% headwind to comparable sales from that pharmacy effect, and said core merchandise sales excluding health and wellness grew 3.4% Forbes,Yahoo! Finance.
Where Left and Right agree, and where they split
- Where Left and Right agree
- The $2.9 billion belongs at the register, and 2.6% comparable sales growth — the weakest since 2020 — shows households are still squeezed either way.
- Where Left and Right split
- Whether the story is about a retailer with $187.9 billion in quarterly revenue proving the refund reached shelves, or about fuel prices eating any discount before shoppers feel it.
How left and right read it
A refund of tariff money belongs to the households that absorbed those costs at the register. Walmart says it has substantially all of roughly $2.9 billion and is putting it toward lower prices — yet it also cleared $187.9 billion in quarterly revenue and raised its outlook, while US comparable sales grew just 2.6%, the weakest since 2020, because fuel costs are forcing shoppers into trade-offs. So how much actually reaches shelves and paychecks?
“Walmart says it has received nearly $3 billion in tariff refunds -- and used some of that windfall to cut prices for consumers strained by inflation.” — NBC News
The test of any trade policy is whether working families come out ahead at the register, and 2.6% comparable sales growth — the weakest since 2020 — says they are not. Walmart is pushing substantially all of roughly $2.9 billion in tariff refunds back into lower prices, yet the CFO points to fuel costs forcing shoppers into trade-offs. Relief at the shelf means little when the pump eats it first. Cheap energy is the price cut that actually reaches households.
“But lower-income shoppers have continued to cut back as they fork over a larger share of their pay at the gas pumps amid the Iran war, as global energy supply disruptions keep prices stubbornly above $4 a gallon.” — New York Post
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Wire services (6)
Independent coverage (50)
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