DBRS Assigns Rating of AA, Stable Trend, to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.’s New Debt Issuance

DBRS Limited (DBRS) has today assigned a rating of AA with a Stable trend to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.’s (Walmart or the Company) new debt issuance as announced on July 7, 2017. The issuance is expected to settle on July 18, 2017.

The issuance is made up of the following three tranches (collectively, the Notes, approximately USD 1.5 billion):
-- JPY 70 billion, 0.183% notes due July 15, 2022
-- JPY 40 billion, 0.298% notes due July 18, 2024
-- JPY 60 billion, 0.520% notes July 16, 2027

DBRS notes that the Notes will be senior unsecured debt obligations and will rank equally with Walmart’s outstanding senior unsecured indebtedness. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Notes for general corporate purposes.

Walmart’s ratings continue to be underpinned by the Company’s large size, dominant market position, relative resilience to economic cycles, operating efficiency and robust cash-generating ability. DBRS notes that the ratings also continue to consider the increasingly competitive retail industry, Walmart’s mature and saturated home market as well as risks associated with the Company’s international expansion.

Notes:
All figures are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted.

The principal methodology is Rating Companies in the Merchandising Industry, which can be found on dbrs.com under Methodologies.

This rating is endorsed by DBRS Ratings Limited for use in the European Union.

This rating was not initiated at the request of the rated entity.

The rated entity or its related entities did participate in the rating process. DBRS did not have access to the accounts and other relevant internal documents of the rated entity or its related entities.