Walmart Stock Falls 9 Percent After Missing Comparable Sales For The First Time In Five Years

Walmart reported Q2 fiscal 2027 earnings Thursday and the stock fell as much as 10 percent to a nine-month low, its worst single-day drop since May 2022, despite beating on revenue and earnings.

The miss that spooked investors: US comparable sales grew just 2.6 percent, well below the 3.7 percent Wall Street forecast and the slowest pace in six years.

It was the first time Walmart had missed this metric in at least five years.

The culprit is gas. Fuel prices above $4 a gallon, elevated because of the Iran conflict, are squeezing American household budgets and the world's largest retailer is feeling it.

"When fuel prices increased and got above $4, perhaps there's a psychological impact to that, that there are choices that consumers are making," CFO John David Rainey told analysts.

Average spending per transaction grew just 1.1 percent, down from 3.1 percent a year ago. Foot traffic grew 1.5 percent, half the prior quarter's pace.

Walmart still raised full-year guidance to 4-5 percent revenue growth and adjusted EPS of $2.80-$2.87. E-commerce sales surged 24 percent.

But the comp sales miss landed like a warning shot across consumer discretionary stocks, Kroger, Albertsons and Target all fell in sympathy.

Goldman Sachs analysts warned real consumer spending growth could slow to 1 percent in the second half of 2026.