Walmart Soars After Reaffirming Guidance, $20 Billion Buyback Plan

Wal-Mart Stores Inc WMT shares are trading higher by $4.12 (5 percent) at $84.65 in Tuesday's session.

Before the open, the company reaffirmed its FY 2018 outlook $4.30-$4.40 vs. $4.38 and expects FY2019 EPS to be up 5 percent year over year. The company also announced a $20 billion stock buyback plan.

The news is a relief to many investors that fear Amazon's AMZN purchase of Whole Foods will pose an immediate threat to the retail behemoth.

After a $2.00 higher open, Walmart had only a 7-cent retreat to $82.61 before continuing its stealth move higher, reaching $84.87 as of 2:10 p.m. EST. The stock hasn't traded above $84.00 since Feb. 2015, when it peaked at $88.00.