Walmart Inc. WMT

Competitive advantage analysis · consumer-defensive

Corporate Default
Overall moat score
64/100
Moderate

About Walmart Inc.

Walmart Inc. engages in the operation of retail and wholesale stores and clubs, eCommerce websites, and mobile applications worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; and ecommerce websites, such as … Full WMT analysis →

Competitive advantage assessment

Key strengths

  • ROIC Sustainably Above Peers ROIC at 84.0th percentile exceeds peers and WACC, demonstrating superior capital allocation.
  • Margins Stable Across Cycles Operating margin volatility is low (stability score 0.96), demonstrating pricing resilience across cycles.

Key risks

  • Liquidity Concerns Liquidity is concerning (score 0.20), raising questions about short-term obligations.
  • Inconsistent Cash Generation Cash generation is inconsistent (score 0.47), indicating operational challenges.

The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.

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Pricing Power

Moderate
64

Where WMT ranks in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services

Walmart Inc. ranks #79 of 265 scored companies in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services by moat score — the top 30%. The widest moat in the group is Brown Forman Inc (BF-A) at 93/100.

Moat scores for companies ranked near WMT in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services
# Company Moat score Rating
75 Kroger Company (The) KR 64/100 Moderate
76 Archer-Daniels-Midland Company ADM 64/100 Moderate
77 Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A. FMX 64/100 Moderate
78 iHuman Inc. IH 64/100 Moderate
79 Walmart Inc. WMT 64/100 Moderate
80 Weis Markets, Inc. WMK 63/100 Moderate
81 Willamette Valley Vineyards, In WVVI 63/100 Moderate
82 Willamette Valley Vineyards, In WVVIP 63/100 Moderate
83 Dollar Tree, Inc. DLTR 63/100 Moderate

See every General Corporate company ranked by moat score →

How WMT scores on the Corporate Default defenses

Pricing Power

Score 64 · 20% of the moat score

Pricing power is the ability to raise prices without losing volume.

Cost Advantage

Score 62 · 15% of the moat score

A cost advantage means delivering the same product for structurally less — better purchasing, denser distribution, a more automated process.

Customer Stickiness

Score 68 · 15% of the moat score

Stickiness is what makes revenue repeat without being re-won every year.

Capital Efficiency

Score 84 · 18% of the moat score

Capital efficiency asks what the company earns on the money tied up in the business.

Resilience

Score 50 · 17% of the moat score

Resilience is the capacity to get through a bad year on its own terms — enough liquidity, enough interest cover, and enough cash generation to avoid a rescue financing or a forced sale.

Scale & Market Position

Score 50 · 15% of the moat score

Scale matters only when it converts into economics.

How each Corporate Default defense is measured, in full →

Understanding WMT's moat

What is Walmart Inc.'s moat score?

Walmart Inc. (WMT) scores 64 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as moderate. It ranks #79 of 265 scored companies in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services, the top 30%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 264 companies in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services. Its strongest defense is Capital Efficiency (84/100) and its weakest is Scale & Market Position (50/100).

How does Walmart Inc. compare with other Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services companies?

Walmart Inc. ranks #79 of 265 scored companies in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services by moat score. The widest moat in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services is Brown Forman Inc (BF-A) at 93/100. The companies ranked closest are iHuman Inc. (IH) at 64 just above it and Weis Markets, Inc. (WMK) at 63 just below it.

How is the moat score calculated?

Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Corporate Default in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 264 companies in Consumer Defensive: Staples & Essential Services. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.

Why is Walmart Inc. scored with the Corporate Default template?

Most public companies sell a product or a service at a margin, so the moat question is whether that margin survives contact with competitors. The Corporate template scores the six defenses that show up in a general operating company's financial signature: whether it can hold price, produce more cheaply than rivals, keep its customers, earn a return above its cost of capital, withstand a downturn, and turn size into economics.

Which competitive defenses are measured for Walmart Inc.?

The Corporate Default template measures 6 defenses, and WMT scores: Pricing Power (64), Cost Advantage (62), Customer Stickiness (68), Capital Efficiency (84), Resilience (50), Scale & Market Position (50). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.

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