Rubbish Check
ABC News Business · 20 August 2026
source“Walmart sees slowest pace in US comparable sales in 6 years, offers cautious guidance”
R4/ 10
Selective
Rubbish Rating — 1 = base fact, 10 = pure rubbish
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In short
Rubbish Talk rates ABC News's claim that Walmart's comp sales hit a "6-year slowest pace" with "cautious guidance" a 4/10 because both figures are accurate, but the headline omits that Walmart beat Q2 earnings and revenue estimates and actually raised its full-year outlook.
The Verdict
Selective. Every number in the headline checks out against the primary release, but leading with the slowdown and "cautious" framing buries a genuine earnings and revenue beat, and the fact that full-year per-share guidance was raised from the prior $2.50-$2.60 range to $2.80-$2.87. A reader gets the miss without the beat.
What actually happened
Walmart's U.S. comparable sales rose 2.6% in the quarter ended July 31, its slowest pace since a comparable quarter in early 2020, and below analyst expectations. The same quarter, Walmart beat Wall Street on both earnings per share and revenue, and its Q3 guidance for EPS and sales came in below analyst expectations, which is what drove shares down sharply.
Key facts
- Comp sales: U.S. comparable sales rose 2.6%, versus 4.1% the prior quarter and analyst expectations of 3.8%; the lowest since a 1.9% gain in the quarter ended January 2020.
- Pharmacy drag: excluding the wellness category (hit by federally capped Medicare drug prices), comps rose 3.4%, still shy of the 3.8% estimate.
- Earnings beat: adjusted EPS of 81 cents topped the 74-cent estimate; net income was $6.37 billion.
- Revenue beat: sales rose 5.9% to $187.94 billion, above the $186.62 billion estimate.
- Q3 guidance miss: projected EPS of 62-64 cents and sales growth of 3-3.5% are both below the 68-cent, $188.19 billion analyst expectations.
- Full-year guidance raised: EPS range moved to $2.80-$2.87 (still below the $2.90 analyst consensus) with sales guided up 4-5%, versus prior guidance of $2.50-$2.60 EPS on 3-4% sales growth.
- E-commerce: U.S. e-commerce grew 24%, down from 26% the prior quarter.
What to watch for
Watch whether the pharmacy/Medicare price-cap drag persists into Q3 and Q4, and whether Walmart's GLP-1 drug sales tailwind, cited by the company as a comp-sales boost, fades as expected next fiscal year. Also watch how rival retailers reporting this week frame comp-sales slowdowns against the same pharmacy-regulation backdrop, which will show whether Walmart's shortfall is company-specific or sector-wide.
About this scoreThe R-Score is Rubbish Talk's editorial opinion on how far a headline's framing sits from what the underlying facts support. It is a judgement about presentation and emphasis, not an allegation that any outlet has acted dishonestly. Every figure we rely on is linked under Receipts so you can check it yourself.
