One has performed much better than the other in the past year, but both Walmart (NYSE: WMT) and Target (NYSE: TGT) stocks have attractive qualities as long-term investments. The retailers are improving their profit margins right now, for example, and are boosting sales in a highly competitive industry. They each have increased their dividend payments for more than 50 consecutive years, too.

Let's look at a few reasons why you might choose one of these stocks over the other for your portfolio right now.

Investors were thrilled to learn that Target is expecting to return to growth in 2024 after a tough year of declines. The post-pandemic demand hangover hit the retailer hard because it sells a higher proportion of consumer discretionary products like home furnishings, while Walmart's focus on essentials protected it from the worst of that pullback. Comparable-store sales fell 4% at Target in 2023 and rose 6% at Walmart.

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Source Fool.com