Walmart Inc. It is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas. As of October 31, , [update] Walmart has 10, stores and clubs in 24 countries, operating under 46 different names. 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 By , it was the most profitable retailer in the U. Walmart's investments outside the U. In , businessman and former J. He experienced setbacks because the lease price and branch purchase were unusually high, but he was able to find lower-cost suppliers than those used by other stores and was consequently able to undercut his competitors on pricing.
The lease then expired for the location and Walton was unable to reach an agreement for renewal, so he opened up a new store at N. Walnut Street in Rogers, Arkansas.
Walton stated that he liked the idea of calling his discount chain "Wal-Mart" because he "really liked Sol's FedMart name". The building is now occupied by a hardware store and an antiques mall, while the company's "Store 1" has since expanded to a Supercenter several blocks west at W.
Walnut Street. The same year, the company opened a home office and first distribution center in Bentonville, Arkansas. It began trading stock as a publicly held company on October 1, , and was soon listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Four stores combined features of discount stores, supermarkets, pharmacies, video arcades, and other amenities. At the time, the company was the largest private satellite network, allowing the corporate office to track inventory and sales and to instantly communicate with stores.
