Walmart Inc. is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 19 other countries. It is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas. The company was founded in 1962 by brothers Sam Walton and James "Bud" Walton in nearby Rogers, Arkansas. It also owns and operates Sam's Club retail warehouses. Walmart is the world's largest company by revenue and the largest private employer in the world, with 2.1 million employees. The company is ranked one in Fortune 500 and Fortune Global 500. In February 2026, Walmart became the first traditional retailer to be valued at over $1 trillion. It is a publicly traded family-owned business, as the company is controlled by the Walton family. Sam Walton's heirs own over 50 percent of Walmart through both their holding company Walton Enterprises and their individual holdings. Walmart was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1972 and switched to the Nasdaq in December 2025. By 1988, it was the most profitable retailer in the U.S., and it had become the largest in terms of revenue by October 1989. Wikipedia