Walmart Expansion Analysis – Part I

Step 1: Data Collection
As a data analyst, you will be required to locate data from multiple sources. It is recommended that you use the Mergent Database in the University of Arizona Global Campus Library, the Business Insight Global database in the University of Arizona Global Campus Library, and Walmart’s latest Annual Report to begin your data collection. These databases should serve as a guide for your research. You are expected to identify additional data sources that will be useful in your analysis.

Accessing Mergent database:
You can locate current Walmart data from the Mergent database in the University of Arizona Global Campus Library. Review the Mergent Online: Accessing Mergent Online (Links to an external site.) for instructions on accessing and searching the database. Search for “Walmart” and select “Walmart Inc.”

Navigate to the Company Financials tab. You may want to review the Income Statement for items such as net sales, operating expenses, projected income, etc. It is recommended that you review data from at least the last five years.

If you wish, you can export this data into an excel document by selecting the “Download” option in the upper right corner of the Mergent page.

Accessing Business Insights: Global database:
To access the Business Insight Global database, access the University of Arizona Global Campus Library and select to the “Find Articles and More”. Next, select “Databases A-Z”, then find the “Business Insights: Global” database. In the search bar, type “Walmart”, ensuring the “Company” tab is selected from the dropdown menu. You may want to review items such as gross profit, interest expense, net income, etc.

Business Insights: Global also has some information on Walmart in particular countries that may be useful in your research. To search, type Walmart or Wal-mart into the search bar at the top of the Business Insights: Global homepage, ensuring “Country” is selected from the drop-down menu. This will provide results that cover Walmart in areas such as China, Brazil, Chile, India, Puerto Rico, Argentina, and Canada. You may wish to gather data for countries that are closest to your region for comparison.

Accessing Walmart’s annual report:
You can find Walmart’s most recent annual report on their Financial Information (Links to an external site.) page. You can use the annual report to gather additional international data.

Here are some examples of data that may be useful to an analyst:

Under “Item 1: Business,” in the “Walmart International Segment,” you may wish to gather data for retail unit count and retail square feet for all available fiscal years for the country or continent closest to your region. For example, if you are looking to expand in Egypt, you will use the data for Africa.
In the “Item 2: Properties” section of the report, you may wish to gather data for the owned and leased properties for the country or continent closest to your region.
In the “Results of Operations” section of the report, look for “Walmart International Segment.” You may wish to gather data for net sales, operating income, and unit counts at period end for all available fiscal years.
You will likely need to gather more data to make your case. You are encouraged to seek out additional data points that will assist you in your analysis. Other data points you may want to consider include, but are not limited to

Gross national income
Population and demographic data
Key economic metrics, including current economic status, inflation, etc.
Labor market data, including average wage, unemployment rate, cost of living, etc.
Market environment
Foreign exchange
Credit environment outlook
Here are some suggested databases to get you started. These databases may not have all the information you need to make a full evaluation. You may need to conduct your own research to find useful databases that house the data you need to conduct your analysis.

International Labour Organization’s ILOSTAT (Links to an external site.)
The World Bank’s Doing Business Data (Links to an external site.)
The World Bank’s DataBank

Step 2: Analyzing the Data
Now that you have gathered your data, you will need to determine the best way to compile the data for analysis. Using the tools and skills you have learned in this course, create graphs and tables that will assist you in making sense of the data. You will use these tables to assess the data and support your analysis.

In your paper,

Summarize the background of the country or region, including what makes it unique and why it is a viable option for Walmart expansion.
Assess the data sets and include any charts or graphs used in your evaluation.
Measure outlook sales, interest, and other trends to make a determination on the regional outlook. Is the outlook improving, remaining stable, or deteriorating? For example, how will this expansion affect sales trends, interest cost trends, etc.?
Calculate whether Walmart will have favorable or unfavorable currency translation adjustments. For example, how strong is the country’s currency against the U.S. dollar?
Create revenue projections and sales projections based on the data. Consider the currently translation adjustments in your projection.
Propose a recommended course of action based on your interpretation of the data.
The Walmart Expansion Analysis Final Project, Part 1: Walmart Case Study Paper