Walmart (WMT) is a Dividend King, a company that has increased its payout to shareholders for 50 consecutive years or longer.
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In Walmart’s case, the discount retailer has raised its dividend for 53 straight years. The company most recently hiked its annual dividend in February of this year, lifting it 5% to $1 per share from $0.94 previously.
WMT stock now pays a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, giving it a yield of 0.80%. The yield used to be higher but has decreased as Walmart’s stock has gone on a bull run, rising 42% in the last 12 months to reach an all-time high of just under $135 per share.
Walmart’s Strong Performance
Walmart has been able to consistently increase its dividend due to the company’s strong financial performance. The Arkansas-based company most recently reported that its quarterly revenue rose 6% to $190.7 billion, while its e-commerce sales surged 24% year-over-year.
Walmart has also pushed aggressively into grocery sales and today is the largest grocer in the U.S. by revenue. The popularity of its grocery offerings and growing sales through e-commerce channels make it likely that Walmart will be able to continue hiking its dividend for many years to come, say analysts.
Is WMT Stock a Buy?
Walmart’s stock has a consensus Strong Buy rating among 29 analysts. That rating is based on 26 Buy and three Hold recommendations issued in the last three months. The average WMT price target of $138.92 implies 12% upside from current levels.
