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Berkshire Hathaway exited its Walmart position in 2018 over fears of an e-commerce threat.
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Walmart has thrived since then, widening its e-commerce position and outperforming Amazon stock.
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The company’s status as the largest global retailer gives it stability and leverage under pressure.
Lots of ink has already been spilled about Warren Buffett‘s recent market activity. What’s significant is the tremendous cash position and 11 quarters of net selling. However, he and his team have found what to buy these days as well.
There’s a clear pattern in what interests Buffett today, and based on his buying activity, I think Walmart (NYSE: WMT) would fit right in.
Buffett actually did own Walmart for stock for about 13 years, from 2005 through 2018. It was one of Berkshire Hathaway‘s largest holdings at first, but he began selling it off in 2015, and he exited the position in 2018.
At the time, he praised Walmart, calling it “a fabulous company,” but he seemed to be worried about retail in light of Amazon’s success with e-commerce. In fact, Berkshire Hathaway bought Amazon stock right after that, in 2019.
He wasn’t wrong. Walmart was late to the e-commerce party, and it took time for the retail giant to really get into it. However, it’s getting stronger and stronger, and e-commerce sales growth accelerated to 25% year over year in the 2025 fiscal second quarter (ended Aug. 1).
However, since January 2019, somewhere in the middle of the Walmart stock sale and Amazon stock purchase, Walmart has outperformed Amazon.
Did Buffett make a mistake? He noted several years ago, “Just as Walmart was once totally underestimated by the seers of its time, the idea some guy in Bentonville, Arkansas, would take them to the cleaners, that was the situation at first with traditional retailers, and Amazon. You want to be underestimated at first.”
It seems like Buffett underestimated Walmart himself when he sold out of it. He has made the mistake that many investors say is their biggest: selling winners too soon. When he made his famous quote about his favorite holding time being “forever,” he referenced Peter Lynch as likening “such behavior” to holding on to losers in the hopes of a turnaround while selling winners “to cutting the flowers and watering the weeds.”
But there’s a way back.
There are specific criteria Buffett always talks about in a great stock: excellent management, an important role in the economy, commitment to shareholder value, and not needing to spend a lot of money to make a lot of money.
