Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) is indicating it's well prepared for next year's entry of rival discount retailer Target Corp. (TGT) into Canada.

Wal-Mart's Canadian operation has been doing business for years, with better stores and the lowest prices when compared with other retailers in Canada, executives said Thursday.

"Although the addition will be new and interesting, we have an 18-year track record and believe our knowledge of the Canadian market will allow us to continue to grow," Shelley Broader, chief executive of Wal-Mart Canada, told Dow Jones Newswires. "Canadians are very tied to us."

Broader was speaking after Wal-Mart's annual international meeting, which was held in Canada this year.

She and other Wal-Mart executives made it clear during their presentations the company is ready to take on all comers, with significant plans for growth this year.

The retailer, which already has 333 locations in Canada, is adding 47 stores, the most expansion it has undertaken in a single year since entering Canada in 1994. Another 26 projects are planned, including remodels, the addition of food to stores and relocations.

"We are cementing our place as the location for one-stop shopping," Broader said, adding that nine out of 10 Canadians shop at Wal-Mart Canada.

Still, the retailer is up against heavy competition in Canada, from the likes of Loblaw Cos. (L.T), Dollarama Inc. (DOL.T), Shoppers Drug Mart Corp. (SC.T) and Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST).

Target is also likely to be a tough competitor. The retailer expects to enter Canada next spring and plans to open 125 to 135 stores in 2013 and 2014.

"Target believes that both retailers compete successfully in many U.S. markets and the same will be true in Canada," Target spokeswoman Lisa Gibson told Dow Jones.

Canada is a US$11 billion-a-year market for Wal-Mart, representing about 10% of international sales and 2% to 2.5% of total sales, according to Buckingham Research Group.

Canadian operations are typically mentioned as one of the most profitable international regions for the company, Buckingham said.

Still, Target has strength of its own. "Of all players currently in or shortly entering the Canada market, Target has been competing head to head with Wal-Mart for the longest and has arguably been the most successful at it, and we don't see that changing as we cross into Canada," UBS retail analyst Robert Carroll said.

The retailers have similar customer bases, although Target's does skew a bit higher on the economic scale, and a number of studies have indicated that Canadians would welcome Target and shop its stores.

-By Karen Talley, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2196; karen.talley@dowjones.com