Walmart stock (NYSE: WMT) experienced a significant decline today following the release of its fiscal fourth-quarter 2024 earnings report. Despite surpassing revenue expectations, the company’s conservative outlook for the upcoming fiscal year has raised concerns among investors.

Walmart Earnings Q4 2024 Overview

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024, Walmart reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.66 on revenue of $180.6 billion. This performance slightly exceeded analysts’ projections of $0.65 EPS on $180.07 billion in revenue. Comparable sales in the U.S. grew by 4.6%, with global e-commerce sales increasing by 16% and global advertising revenue rising by 29%.

Investors

Fiscal 2025 Outlook and Market Reaction

Despite the positive Q4 results, Walmart’s guidance for the first quarter and fiscal year 2025 fell short of market expectations. The company anticipates Q1 EPS between $0.57 and $0.58, below the consensus estimate of $0.64. For the full fiscal year, projected EPS ranges from $2.50 to $2.60, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.77. This cautious outlook led to an 8% drop in Walmart’s shares during premarket trading.

Investors

Dividend Increase Amid Conservative Forecast

In an effort to return value to shareholders, Walmart announced a 13% increase in its annual dividend, raising it to $0.94 per share. This move comes despite the company’s conservative revenue and profit targets for fiscal 2025, which project a 3% to 4% sales growth, slightly below analyst expectations.

Wall Street Journal

Analyst Perspectives

Morgan Stanley analysts remain optimistic, suggesting that Walmart’s stock could reach $150 due to strong profit margins and investments in technology to enhance e-commerce efficiency. However, other analysts express caution, noting that Walmart’s shares are trading near 20-year highs, which may limit further stock price appreciation.

Investopedia

Current Stock Performance

As of 3:15 PM Central European Time on February 20, 2025, Walmart’s stock is trading at $104.00, reflecting a slight increase of $0.22 (0.21%) from the previous close.