Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Net Operating Profit After Taxes (NOPAT)

The net operating profit after taxes exhibited a declining trend from 2020 to 2023, decreasing from $18,200 million to $13,880 million. However, a notable recovery occurred in 2024, with NOPAT rising to $18,517 million, followed by a further increase to $22,003 million in 2025. This indicates a significant rebound in operational profitability in the latter years.

Invested Capital

Invested capital showed a gradual decline over the period from 2020 through 2023, falling from $167,329 million to $149,558 million. Subsequently, it experienced a modest increase during 2024 and 2025, reaching $161,279 million by the end of the latest period. This suggests a scaling back of capital investment initially, followed by a cautious reinvestment phase.

Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)

ROIC followed a pattern similar to NOPAT, with a reduction from 10.88% in 2020 to a low point of 9.28% in 2023. Afterwards, a marked improvement occurred in 2024 and 2025, pushing ROIC up to 11.92% and then to 13.64%. The improvement in ROIC correlates with the recovery in net operating profit, indicating enhanced effectiveness in generating returns from invested capital in recent years.

The analysis of financial performance indicators over the observed periods reveals several noteworthy trends. Operating profit margin (OPM) exhibits a decreasing trend from 4.52% in early 2020 to a low of 3.26% in early 2023, followed by a recovery to 4.37% by early 2025. This suggests an initial decline in profitability relative to sales, with a subsequent improvement toward the end of the period.

Turnover of capital (TO), which measures the efficiency of capital use in generating revenue, shows a steady upward trajectory. Starting at a ratio of 3.11 in 2020, it increases each year, reaching 4.18 by 2025. This consistent growth indicates improving asset utilization and operational efficiency over the years.

The inverse of the effective cash tax rate (1 – CTR) indicates the proportion of pre-tax income retained after taxes. It shows a declining trend from 77.46% in 2020 to 70.29% in 2023, followed by a partial recovery to around 74.62% by 2025. This pattern reflects fluctuations in tax burden, with a peak in tax impact around 2023 and some easing in subsequent years.

Return on invested capital (ROIC), a critical measure of profitability relative to invested funds, remains relatively stable initially but dips from 11.03% in 2021 to 9.28% in 2023. Afterwards, it experiences considerable improvement, reaching a peak of 13.64% in 2025. This trend aligns with the recovery in operating profitability and improved capital turnover, reflecting enhanced overall investment returns in the later years.

Operating Profit Margin (OPM)

Decreased from 4.52% in 2020 to 3.26% in 2023; recovered to 4.37% by 2025.

Turnover of Capital (TO)

Increased steadily from 3.11 in 2020 to 4.18 by 2025, indicating improved asset utilization.

1 – Effective Cash Tax Rate (CTR)

Decreased from 77.46% in 2020 to 70.29% in 2023, then partially recovered to about 74.62% by 2025.

Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)

Dipped from 11.03% in 2021 to 9.28% in 2023; significantly improved to 13.64% by 2025.

Overall, the financial indicators suggest a period of initial margin compression and increased tax burden impacting profitability, followed by operational improvements and enhanced capital efficiency leading to stronger ROIC and profitability metrics in recent years.

The financial performance over the periods displayed indicates several notable trends in the key metrics analyzed.

Net Operating Profit Before Taxes (NOPBT)

The NOPBT exhibits a fluctuating pattern over the years. Beginning at 23,496 million US dollars in the initial period, it shows a slight increase the following year, reaching 23,635 million. Subsequently, there is a decline in the next two periods, followed by a strong recovery. By the final period, the NOPBT climbs to its highest point within the dataset, at 29,485 million US dollars, suggesting enhanced profitability or operational efficiencies in the last reported year.

Net Sales

Net sales demonstrate a consistent upward trajectory throughout all recorded periods. Starting from 519,926 million US dollars, there is a steady year-over-year increase, culminating in 674,538 million US dollars by the last period. This consistent sales growth indicates expanding revenue streams and potentially successful market or product strategies.

Operating Profit Margin (OPM)

The operating profit margin shows a declining trend in the first four periods, dropping from 4.52% to 3.26%. However, the margin reverses direction thereafter, increasing to 3.88% and further to 4.37% in the last two years, which points to an improvement in cost management or operational efficiency relative to sales. The margin in the final period nearly matches the initial level, returning to a relatively strong profitability ratio.

Overall, despite some mid-period declines in profitability measures, the combination of continuously rising net sales and recovery in operating profit margins towards the end of the timeline suggests strengthened operational performance and improved profit generation capacity in recent periods.

Net Sales

Net sales have shown a consistent upward trajectory over the six-year period. Beginning at 519,926 million US dollars in early 2020, the figure increased steadily each year, reaching 674,538 million US dollars by early 2025. The growth reflects a positive sales momentum, with the largest annual increment observed between 2022 and 2023.

Invested Capital

Invested capital exhibits a declining trend from 2020 to 2023, decreasing from 167,329 million US dollars to 149,558 million US dollars. However, in the subsequent two years, there is a reversal in the trend with increases to 155,389 million and then 161,279 million US dollars. This suggests a period of capital optimization or divestment followed by renewed investment or capital expenditures.

Turnover of Capital (TO)

The turnover of capital ratio reflects the efficiency of capital use in generating sales. It demonstrates a continuous improvement throughout the period, rising from 3.11 in 2020 to 4.18 in 2025. This upward trend indicates enhanced operational efficiency, with higher sales generated per unit of invested capital year over year.

Summary Insight

Overall, the data indicate a company that has steadily increased sales while managing invested capital more efficiently, particularly from 2020 to 2023. The subsequent increase in invested capital alongside continued sales growth and higher capital turnover suggests strategic reinvestment aligned with operational improvements. The rising turnover ratio corroborates the positive impact of capital management on sales performance.

Cash operating taxes

The cash operating taxes demonstrate a general upward trend over the period from January 31, 2020, to January 31, 2025. Starting at 5,296 million USD in 2020, the amount gradually increases almost every year, reaching 7,482 million USD by 2025. A slight decline is observed in 2023 compared to 2022, with taxes decreasing from 6,392 to 5,868 million USD, before rising again in the subsequent years.

Net operating profit before taxes (NOPBT)

The net operating profit before taxes shows some variability during the examined years. Initially, the NOPBT remains relatively stable from 2020 to 2021, with values around 23,500 million USD. However, a downward trend is visible from 2021 through 2023, with profits declining to 19,748 million USD. After 2023, a significant recovery occurs, with NOPBT increasing sharply to 29,485 million USD by 2025, representing a notable improvement over earlier years.

Effective cash tax rate (CTR)

The effective cash tax rate shows an increasing trend from 22.54% in 2020, rising steadily to 29.71% in 2023. After this peak, the rate decreases to 25.38% by 2025. This indicates a period of higher taxation relative to operating profits ending in 2023, followed by a reduction in the tax rate in the final two years, though not returning to the initial lower levels seen in 2020 and 2021.