In his autobiography, Sam Walton: Made In America, Walmart (WMT) founder Sam Walton said that “the more you share profits with your associates — whether it’s in salaries or incentives or bonuses or stock discounts — the more profit will accrue to the company.”
Decades later, Walmart is still sharing its profits — but today’s debate centers on who benefits most.
After Walmart approved the largest share repurchase authorization in its history, it rekindled a long-running feud with one of its fiercest critics, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Here’s what investors need to know about Walmart’s newest stock buyback program, its history of repurchasing its shares, and what buybacks mean for Walmart shareholders and employees.
What is Walmart’s latest stock buyback plan?
In February 2026, Walmart announced a new $30 billion share repurchase authorization — the largest in its 55-year history as a publicly traded company.
This followed a fiscal year in which Walmart returned $15.6 billion to shareholders through dividends and stock buybacks.
The announcement quickly drew criticism from Sanders, who argued on X that Walmart could have paid each employee a $23,550 bonus instead.
Since 2020, Walmart spent $37.6 billion in stock buybacks—enough to give all their workers a $23,550 bonus.
Instead, Walmart pays wages so low that many of their workers need Medicaid & SNAP paid for by taxpayers.
The real welfare queen is the Walton family worth $485 billion.
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) July 23, 2026
Sanders has been a vocal opponent of corporate stock buybacks, calling them forms of “corporate self-indulgence” that “enrich the wealthy few.”
In 2019, Sanders, along with Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), introduced legislation aimed at prohibiting a corporation from share repurchases “unless it invests in its workers and communities first,” by raising entry-level wages to $15 per hour, and offering sick leave and pensions. The bill was actually called the “Stop WALMART Act,” an acronym for the “Stop Welfare for Any Large Monopoly Amassing Revenue from Taxpayers Act.”
Ultimately, however, the bill stalled in Congress.
On June 5, 2019, Walmart’s shareholders voted down a Sanders-backed proposal to put company employees on its board of directors.
Walmart has defended its approach, calling itself a “people-led, tech-powered” company. A spokesperson invited Sanders to “learn about the many ways we’re working to provide increased economic opportunity, mobility and benefits to our associates — as well as our widely recognized leadership on environmental sustainability.”
Related: Bernie Sanders’ net worth: How much money does the ‘Fighting Oligarchy’ Senator have?
Walmart’s stock buyback history
As part of its capital return strategy, Walmart has repurchased shares for decades through continuous authorizations and annual share retirements.
But as economic conditions have changed, Walmart’s annual repurchase activity has fluctuated.
Here’s how it has evolved over the past six fiscal years, according to SEC filings:
- FY2021:$2.62 billion. Facing uncertainty during the COVID-19 pandemic, Walmart prioritized preserving cash to fund pandemic wages, enhance store sanitation, and invest in its supply chain.
- FY2022:$9.79 billion. The company generated exceptionally strong profits during this period, due to a fourfold increase in pickup and delivery services. Total revenue reached $572.7 billion; management deployed its excess capital into the market.
- FY2023:$9.92 billion. Despite supply chain issues, Walmart’s revenue exceeded $611 billion, and it generated strong cash flow. This allowed its heightened repurchases to continue.
- FY2024: $2.78 billion. Inflationary pressures and a more cautious approach to spending contributed to Walmart’s slowest rate of repurchases since 2021.
- FY2025:$4.49 billion. As Walmart became more profitable and e-commerce grew, the company’s buybacks accelerated.
- FY2026:$8.09 billion. Thanks to investments in artificial intelligence, Walmart’s operating performance strengthened, and management authorized a record new $30 billion repurchase program while retiring 85 million shares.
Related: Does Walmart pay dividends? Its yield and payouts explained
Who benefits most from stock buybacks?
In one sense, Sanders has a point: Share repurchases benefit shareholders and executives more than company employees.
Executives benefit from stock buybacks because their compensation packages are often tied to stock performance. And so long as a company’s earnings grow, its earnings per share (EPS) will rise as the number of shares outstanding decrease.
More on stock buybacks:
- Oracle’s stock buybacks: History & investor impact explained
- AMD’s stock buybacks explained: History, balance & outlook
- Meta’s stock buybacks: How the company’s AI spending could affect shareholder returns
Similar to dividend payouts, shareholders benefit from share repurchases — in fact, they are often the more tax-efficient shareholder reward.
But unless an employee participates in a stock-purchase plan, they do not benefit directly from share repurchases.
However, many economists disagree with Sanders’ underlying premise. They argue that returning excess cash to shareholders doesn’t necessarily come at the expense of wages, since compensation and capital investments are typically determined through separate budgeting processes.
Related: Walmart’s stock split history (& prospects) explained
Therefore, the best use of a company’s excess capital depends on where management believes it will generate the greatest long-term value.
That echoes Sam Walton’s belief that sharing profits wisely helps create even more profits over time.
Related: How many employees does Walmart have in 2026? Its workforce, locations & layoffs explained
