Wal-Mart Announces $3 Billion Jet.com Acquisition

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. officially announced its acquisition of Jet.com for $3 billion in cash, a portion of which will be paid over time. Another $300 million of Walmart shares will be paid over time. The deal is expected to close by the end of the calendar year. News that the companies were in talks was first reported by The Wall Street Journal last week. Jet.com has a customer base of urban and millennial customers, with 400,000 added each month, according to the release. The two companies will maintain their brands, with the companies leveraging technology solutions for new customer offerings. Walmart will announce second-quarter earnings on Aug. 18. Wal-Mart shares are up 0.7% in premarket trading, and 20.3% for the year so far. The S&P 500 Index is up 6.8% for the year to date.