If you bought 1 share of Walmart at the IPO, here’s how many shares you’d own now

It is difficult to see a world without it Walmart (NYSE: WMT). The company opened its first discount store in the early 1960s and carried out its IPO (IPO) in October 1970.

If you were lucky and smart enough to buy just one stock in its early days as a public company, you would have many more due to subsequent stock splits.

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Exactly how many shares would you own? Tracing the stock split history and doing some multiplication will provide the answer.

A smiling person is checking out in a store.A smiling person is checking out in a store.

A smiling person is checking out in a store.

Image source: Getty Images.

Increasing number of shares

Walmart has declared 12 stock splits since its IPO. Most were 2-to-1 splits, but the exception was February’s 3-to-1 split.

Each time a 2-for-1 split occurred, your share count doubled, and the number tripled in February. Therefore, your one share became 6,144 shares.

The unadjusted split price was $16.50. While your share increased, the price decreased by the same amount. That means $16.50 becomes a split-adjusted $0.0027 (ie, well under a penny per share). The stock closed at $94.25 on December 13, giving long-term investors a nice profit.

You would also have collected dividends for more than 50 years. Walmart’s first quarterly payout was in March 1974, and the board has raised them every year since. It makes the company a Yield king.

It most recently increased the quarterly payout in February. Walmart currently pays $0.2075 per quarter, up more than 9% from the prior year’s split-adjusted $0.19.

Walmart’s simple business plan that keeps costs down and passes the savings on to customers has resonated with customers. It has also proven to be very profitable and rewarding for shareholders. With its ultra-low everyday prices, it’s hard for competitors to undercut the company, and it should continue to prove rewarding for patient shareholders.

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Lawrence Rothman, CFA has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Walmart. The Motley Fool has one disclosure policy.