Walmart inc. announced a three-for-one stock split easing the barrier for employees and investors to buy shares.
The Arkansas-based company said the stock split is part of its "ongoing review of optimal trading and spread levels and its desire for its associates to feel that purchasing shares is easily within reach."
The announcement comes as the company's stock is trading just below its all-time high of nearly $170 per share reached in November 2021.
Walmart CEO Dough McMillon said in a statement that the company's founder, Sam Walton, was a firm believer in keeping the share price within a range where purchasing whole share, not fractions, was accessible.
With a three-for-one stock split, each old share becomes equal to three shares. In turn, the price per share becomes cheaper. So far this year, shares are up nearly 6% outpacing the S&P 500's 2% rise.
WALMART CREATING 150 NEW STORES, REDESIGNING HUNDREDS MORE
In total, over 40,000 of its employees currently participate in the company's Walmart’s Associate Stock Purchase Plan, which gives them the ability to buy stock through payroll deductions.
It also provides a 15% company match on the first $1,800 each year, according to Walmart.
Shareholders will receive a distribution of two additional shares of common stock for each share held, Walmart said.
The shares to be issued in the stock split will be payable after market close on Feb. 23 for shareholders of record at the close of business the day before.
McMillon said that given the company's growth and its future plans, they believed it was a good time to create the stock split.
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In the U.S. alone, the company just announced it was developing and enhancing hundreds of stores over the next five years. It will mark the first time since November 2021 that Walmart opens a store.
New stores will be a mix of 182,000-square-foot Walmart Supercenters that employ about 300 and 38,000-square-foot Neighborhood Markets that employ up to 95.
As such, hundreds of jobs will open up in various communities around the nation.
