Wal-Mart: Too Cheap to Pass Up

Wal-Mart Stores, one of the world's biggest companies and by far the world's largest retailer, with $408 billion in revenue, built its discount empire on that basic promise. Now, Wal-Mart's own stock sells at a sharply discounted price, day in and day out.

While the company's executives still make appearances at growth-stock conferences, as they have for years, Wal-Mart shares are increasingly showing up in the portfolios of a classic value-investing crowd—outfits such as Harris Associates' Oakmark Funds, Tweedy Browne and Wally Weitz & Co.'s Weitz Funds.

In fact, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway doubled its position in the Bentonville, Ark.-based company last November and kept the stake at least through the first quarter, based on its most recent disclosures.

Wal-Mart's market value, at $182 billion, is now less than half its revenue, a stunningly low ratio. (more)