Bright outlook helps offset your risk

Article Excerpt

Walmart ticks all the boxes as a sound stock pick for our subscribers. That’s on top of its 22% gain for investors in the past year and its strong 158.7% rise in the 13 and a half years since we first recommended it. For so many reasons, the world’s biggest retailer remains our favourite pick among its peers. For instance, its dominant position reflects its obvious savvy, which led to the early adoption of computerized cash registers and the more-recent embrace of online retailing. Both of those have sped up Walmart’s growth and brightened the outlook for its investors. Still, given the stock’s impressive gains—Walmart’s shares trade at 24 times its earnings—some prospective investors worry it’s too pricey. However, the company’s recent moves justify its high p/e. For one, its expanding e-commerce operations help the retailer better compete with Amazon.com. New investments in India and China will also let investors tap those high-potential markets. Moreover, its long history of annual dividend increases…