In 1940, just out of college, a young fella by the name of Sam Walton joins JC Penney’s management trainee program. Anticipating being drafted into the military, Sam leaves JC Penney after just 18 months. Sure enough, he performs his patriotic duties during WWII and in 1945 he combines his own military earnings with a $20,000 loan from his father-in-law and he buys a Ben Franklin variety store in Newport, Arkansas. About 5 years later, the expensive lease runs out and he cannot negotiate a new one. So, he opens his own franchise Walton’s Five and Dime in Bentonville, Arkansas.
A dozen or so years later, in 1962, Sam Walton launches the Wal-Mart Discount City store. Not in Discount City, but in Rogers, Arkansas. The rest, as they say, is history.
Let’s face it, we’ve all been in one. Some of us have worked in one. None of us ever want to be in one. But they have what we need at a good price.
On February 21, 2023, they announced a dividend increase that represents 50 consecutive years of annual increases in their dividend, making them a Dividend King.
All hail Walmart Inc!
According to TD Ameritrade:
Walmart Inc. offers shopping opportunities in both retail stores and through e-commerce and provides access to its other service offerings. The Company offers an assortment of merchandise and services at everyday low prices (EDLP). The Company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International and Sam’s Club. The Walmart U.S. segment is a merchandiser of consumer products, operating under the Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands, as well as walmart.com and other e-commerce brands, and it operates in the United States. The Walmart International segment includes various formats divided into two categories: retail and wholesale. These categories consist of various formats, including supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs (including Sam’s Clubs) and cash & carry, as well as e-commerce through walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com and other sites. The Sam’s Club segment is a membership-only warehouse club that also operates samsclub.com.
Walmart Inc [WMT] becomes the 49th Dividend King and the 13th King from the Consumer Staples sector. However, at this time they seem to be more than fairly valued and their dividend yield of 1.6% is just a shade under that of the S&P 500 Index. Therefore, we shouldn’t expect to see WMT in the weekly Top Ten any time soon.
Until that fateful day when we can become shareholders at a Walmart-ian price, when the markets have tanked and WMT has been destroyed along with your Roblox [RBLX] and CRISPR Therapeutics [CRSP], we’ll just have to be content as customers.