Inflation means everybody suddenly loves Walmart

Walmart’s famed low-price strategy is winning more consumers as annoyingly high inflation sticks around.

The largest company in the U.S. by annual revenue — at least for now — reported sales and profit numbers Thursday that bested analyst expectations. Walmart credited the solid performance, in part, to its growing ability to coax shoppers with higher incomes into its stores to take advantage of deals. On the company’s post-earnings conference call, however, executives hastened to add that their growing eCommerce business was part of the reason it’s been able to make headway with households that make more than $100,000 a year.

“We’re not just a play for value anymore,” the company’s CFO John David Rainey told analysts, stressing the convenience of shopping online for consumers of all income levels.

The market loved the the numbers, especially the fact that the retailer also slightly raised its full-year profit guidance. By mid-morning the stock was on its way to its best daily gain since November 2022.