Walmart (NYSE:WMT) shares are down nearly 3% in pre-open trading after rival Target (NYSE:TGT) issued its second profit warning in three weeks.
Target now expects a Q2 operating margin of around 2%, down from around 5.3% when they issued earnings on May 18th. Further, the company said it is taking measures to tackle its inventory surge such as more markdowns, removing excess inventory, and canceling orders.
Walmart issued its own warning when it reported its results on May 17th, so investors are nervous. At that time, Walmart said it sees operating income and EPS 'flat to up slightly' versus its prior outlook of an 'increase low to mid-single-digits'.
Walmart's CEO, Judith McKenna, will be speaking at the Baird 2022 Global Consumer, Technology & Services Conference today at 10:15 a.m. EDT. This could be a positive or negative catalyst for the stock depending on McKenna's comments on the second quarter in the wake of Target's warning.