5 Retailers Hedge Funds Are Bailing On As Inflation Soars

1. Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Number of Hedge Fund Shareholders: 60

Topping the list is Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT), which remains the most popular retailer on this list among hedge funds, but which has nonetheless seen an 18% drop in ownership over the past two quarters. Zach Schreiber’s Point State Capital and Steve Cohen’s Point72 Asset Management are some of the notable money managers that are no longer shareholders of WMT.

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) shares have fallen by 15% since the middle of May due to the company’s underwhelming fiscal Q1 earnings, which was followed by a guidance cut at the end of July. Walmart’s fiscal 2023 sales growth is now expected to come in at just 4.5%, which doesn’t even factor in the effects of inflation.

After rebounding to $25.9 billion in operating income for its fiscal 2022, Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) is now expecting a 12% decline on that front during the current fiscal year, which would barely top its results from the pandemic affected fiscal 2021. Cost pressures are also projected to drive Walmart’s operating margin down even further, to less than 4% this fiscal year, which would represent a nearly 33% decline over the past five years.

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