Shares in U.S. retail giant Walmart (WMT) were lower today as it announced a number of new leadership changes, including the departure of its international boss.
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New International Chief
Walmart said that Chris Nicholas, President and CEO of Sam’s Club U.S., will succeed Kath McLay as President and CEO of Walmart International, overseeing operations in 17 countries, after she leaves the role on January 31.
McLay, who is from Australia, joined Walmart in 2015 and helped steer Sam’s Club through the covid pandemic. She was made international head in August 2023, helping grow its sales in nations such as China and Mexico – see below:
In its recent Q3 earnings Walmart said international sales increased by 11.4% in constant currency, with an adjusted operating income increase of 16.9%.
In other moves, Seth Dallaire has been elevated to Executive Vice President and Chief Growth Officer for Walmart, overseeing global enterprise platforms like Walmart Connect, Walmart+, Walmart Data Ventures, Vizio, and its global Marketplace platform. David Guggina has been appointed President and CEO of Walmart U.S.
Latriece Watkins, EVP and Chief Merchandising Officer for Walmart U.S., is now President and CEO of Sam’s Club U.S.
Several Leadership Changes
The changes follow hot on the heels of President and CEO Doug McMillion’s decision back in November to step down from his role. He will be replaced by John Furner, current Walmart U.S. chief on February 1.
“Over my 32 years with Walmart, I’ve seen that our people are our greatest competitive advantage. These internal promotions reflect our culture of opportunity and the depth of our leadership bench,” Furner said. “These leadership changes also mark a key step in how we organize for the future. Even the best teams need the right structure to win. As AI rapidly reshapes retail, we are centralizing our platforms to accelerate shared capabilities, freeing up our operating segments to be more focused on and closer to our customers and members.”
Despite the stirring words, investors may react cautiously to so much leadership changes in such a short period of time. As such – Finance & Corporate – is a key risk for customer-facing stocks such as Walmart – see above – and its investors to consider.
Is WMT a Good Stock to Buy Now?
On TipRanks, WMT has a Strong Buy consensus based on 25 Buy and 1 Hold ratings. Its highest price target is $136. WMT stock’s consensus price target is $126.29, implying a 6.39% upside.
