Facebook Is Now More Valuable Than Walmart

Remember when Facebook's IPO was declared an embarrassing flop? It's a time some people might now prefer to forget—especially those who unloaded their shares for below $20 in 2012. Less than three years later, the social network's shares have surged to $87.88 as of yesterday, pushing Walmart, the world's biggest retailer, out of the top 10 of Standard & Poor's 500 list of the highest-valued companies, the AP reports. A 34% rise over the last year has pushed Facebook's valuation to $238 billion, ahead of Walmart's $234 billion.

Walmart, however, is still at the top of the Fortune 500 list of US companies ranked by revenue and Fortune notes that Facebook is a long way from the top 10 of that list: A huge surge in revenue last year put it in the top 250, with $12.5 billion, but that's still less than a 40th of Walmart's revenue. Walmart's profits have been sagging for various reasons, including the strong dollar, but according to the AP, the real reason Facebook has moved ahead is Wall Street's focus on potential—especially for tech firms—over existing revenue. (Walmart has joined other major retailers in ceasing to sell Confederate flag-themed merchandise.)