Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Bentonville, AR United States

  (NYSE: WMT)

Company Description

Wal-Mart Stores is an irresistible (or at least unavoidable) retail force that has yet to meet any immovable objects. Bigger than Europe's Carrefour, Metro AG, and Tesco combined, it's the world's #1 retailer with more than 2.1 million employees. In the US Wal-Mart operates about 700 discount stores, 2,900 Supercenters that sell groceries and general merchandise, 610 Sam's Club warehouses, and a growing number of smaller format stores. The company's faster growing international division (26% of sales) numbers more than 4,500 locations; Wal-Mart is the #1 retailer in Canada and Mexico and has operations in Asia (where it owns a 95% stake in Japanese retailer SEIYU), Africa, Europe, and South America.