Walmart, Home Depot, Target apply

President Donald Trump suggested last month he would look out for companies that didn’t seek tariff refunds after the Supreme Court struck down his wide-ranging global duties.

At first, some major firms like Amazon appeared to be holding off on asking for money back over concerns they’d offend the often transactional president and end up in his crosshairs, CNBC reported earlier this year. But now some of the largest U.S. companies from Walmart to Apple have confirmed they’re seeking what they’re owed — regardless of the consequences.

Home Depot, General Motors, John Deere, FedEx and Costco are among the other major U.S. corporations that have said they are trying to get refunds. The moves may not represent a sea change in how companies handle their relationships with Trump. Even so, they show key examples of when they’re willing to publicly break with the president, after he told CNBC he would “remember” if companies decided not to seek refunds.

There’s a strong business incentive to apply — as well as, for many, a fiduciary responsibility. Major companies have a chance to regain potentially billions of dollars and maximize returns for shareholders.

More than $35 billion in refund money has already been processed and is on its way to businesses’ bank accounts, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a court filing earlier this month. The government owes roughly $166 billion in refunds overall.

When Trump appeared on “Squawk Box” last month, CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin said that at the time, Apple was among the companies that had held off on applying for a refund over apparent concerns it would upset the president. In response, Trump said it was “Brilliant if they don’t do that.”

“Actually, if they don’t do that, they’ve got to know me very well,” he said. “I’m very honored by what you just said.”

“If they don’t do that, I’ll remember them,” Trump said.

The comments made waves around Washington, where lobbyists and business groups say it initially gave some importers pause over whether to apply for the money they were due. Companies have been trying to parse what exactly the president might have meant with his remark, and whether and how the administration could retaliate against them for moving through the process.

But the threat has not deterred the largest U.S. companies from trying to claw back what they paid in tariffs. Take the largest U.S. retailer Walmart, which drew Trump’s ire last year when it said it could have to raise prices in response to the duties, sparking Trump to tell the retailer to “eat the tariffs” and warn he would be “watching.”

In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, Walmart finance chief John David Rainey confirmed that the company applied to get back the money it paid for so-called IEEPA tariffs, but doesn’t expect a major windfall if and when it is paid back. 

“We have availed ourselves of the option to participate in those refunds. For us, it’s a relatively small part of our overall business,”…