WMT Payout Ratio: current value, 10-year range and year-by-year history
Cash & Leverage
Payout Ratio History
WMT Payout Ratio by year
Yearly range of WMT’s payout ratio from 2016 to 2026. Over the full period it ranged from 23.7% to 195.0%, averaging 46.2%.
| Year | Low | Average | High | Year-end |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 50.4% | 56.0% | 60.7% | 57.0% |
| 2025 | 47.9% | 50.9% | 53.0% | 47.9% |
| 2024 | 38.6% | 44.1% | 53.6% | 38.6% |
| 2023 | 31.2% | 40.5% | 50.6% | 48.4% |
| 2022 | 55.3% | 112.2% | 195.0% | 86.3% |
| 2021 | 23.7% | 30.7% | 35.9% | 35.9% |
| 2020 | 25.3% | 31.4% | 41.6% | 25.3% |
| 2019 | 34.8% | 38.3% | 43.5% | 43.5% |
| 2018 | 33.0% | 33.3% | 33.6% | 33.0% |
| 2017 | 29.2% | 31.5% | 34.5% | 32.2% |
| 2016 | 28.8% | 28.8% | 28.8% | 28.8% |
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What fraction of free cash flow is paid out as dividends. More reliable than the earnings-based payout ratio because cash is harder to manipulate through accounting choices. Low ratio = room to grow the dividend and absorb an earnings dip. High ratio = dividend is consuming most of the cash generated.
TTM Dividends Per Share / (TTM FCF ÷ Shares) × 100%A steadily rising FCF payout ratio warrants scrutiny only if FCF itself is flat or falling — that means the company is paying out a larger slice of shrinking cash. A high but stable ratio in a capital-light business (e.g. consumer staples) can be perfectly sustainable.
- FCF can be lumpy: large one-off capex or working-capital swings distort a single year. Look at the multi-year trend rather than any single data point.
- Utilities and REITs naturally sustain 60–90% FCF payout ratios; industrials and tech companies typically run 20–50%. Always compare to sector context.
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