Walmart defends pullback on DEI while investors and leaders debate its effects on performance

Yahoo Finance12-17

Walmart's (WMT) pullback on diversity, equity, and inclusion, commonly referred to as DEI, could ripple across the industry as other companies reassess their efforts amid conservative backlash. DEI ...

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overflow: hidden}\n.head .h-thumb { width: 30px; height: 30px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border-radius: 50%; float: left;}\n.head .h-content { margin: 0; padding: 0 0 0 9px; float: left;}\n.head .h-name {font-size: 13px; color: #eee; margin: 0;}\n.head .h-time {font-size: 11px; color: #7E829C; margin: 0;line-height: 11px;}\n.small {font-size: 12.5px; display: inline-block; transform: scale(0.9); -webkit-transform: scale(0.9); transform-origin: left; -webkit-transform-origin: left;}\n.smaller {font-size: 12.5px; display: inline-block; transform: scale(0.8); -webkit-transform: scale(0.8); transform-origin: left; -webkit-transform-origin: left;}\n.bt-text {font-size: 12px;margin: 1.5em 0 0 0}\n.bt-text p {margin: 0}\n</style>\n</head>\n<body>\n<div class=\"wrapper\">\n<header>\n<h2 class=\"title\">\nWalmart defends pullback on DEI while investors and leaders debate its effects on performance\n</h2>\n\n<h4 class=\"meta\">\n\n\n2024-12-17 06:02 GMT+8&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/walmart-defends-pullback-on-dei-while-investors-and-leaders-debate-its-effects-on-performance-220230993.html><strong>Yahoo Finance</strong></a>\n\n\n</h4>\n\n</header>\n<article>\n<div>\n<p>Walmart's (WMT) pullback on diversity, equity, and inclusion, commonly referred to as DEI, could ripple across the industry as other companies reassess their efforts amid conservative backlash. \nDEI ...</p>\n\n<a href=\"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/walmart-defends-pullback-on-dei-while-investors-and-leaders-debate-its-effects-on-performance-220230993.html\">Source Link</a>\n\n</div>\n\n\n</article>\n</div>\n</body>\n</html>\n","isBrief":false,"type":0,"news_type":1,"symbol":"LU0127658192.USD","symbol_name":"EASTSPRING INVESTMENTS GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY \"A\" (USD) ACC","start_time":0,"source_url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/walmart-defends-pullback-on-dei-while-investors-and-leaders-debate-its-effects-on-performance-220230993.html","article_id":"2492625709","we_media_id":null,"thumbnails":["https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/1ncZNlGN6YCWDJhm3YHC3g--~B/aD0zMjUwO3c9NDg3NTthcHBpZD15dGFjaHlvbg--/https://s.yimg.com/os/creatr-uploaded-images/2024-11/236a4570-a6c5-11ef-a6e7-dfd8165c6203"],"rights":null,"url":"https://stock-news.laohu8.com/highlight/detail?id=2492625709","pubTimestamp":1734386550,"columns":[],"sourceInfo":{"source_id":"yahoofinance","name":"雅虎金融"},"weMediaInfo":null,"summary":"Walmart's  pullback on diversity, equity, and inclusion, commonly referred to as DEI, could ripple across the industry as other companies reassess their efforts amid conservative backlash.DEI became widely adopted in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd, but the concept dates back further. Now, America's largest employer — and Yahoo Finance's 2024 Company of the Year — is reframing its focus to inclusion and belonging.In late November, Walmart confirmed to Yahoo Finance it will no longer use the term DEI or participate in the corporate equality rating system created by the Human Rights Campaign . It plans to shutter its $100 million Center for Racial Equity, among other actions like moving away from the term Latinx.\"When you talk about diversity, equity, inclusion, all in part, there can be communities, and often the largest communities, that step back and say, 'Geez, I'm not sure if I'm even actually included',\" Morris explained of the decision.Based on a survey this year of 400 ","collect":0,"end_time":0,"defaultTopTitle":"yahoo.com","property":[],"viewcount":null,"language":"en","relate_stocks":{"LU0127658192.USD":"EASTSPRING INVESTMENTS GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY \"A\" (USD) ACC","LU1951200564.SGD":"Natixis Thematics AI & Robotics Fund R/A SGD","LU0882574139.USD":"富达环球消费行业基金A ACC","LU1064131342.USD":"Fullerton Lux Funds - Global Absolute Alpha A Acc USD","SBUX":"星巴克","LU0289739343.SGD":"SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL THEMATIC PORTFOLIO \"A\" (SGD) ACC","ELF":"e.l.f. 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Now, America's largest employer — and Yahoo Finance's 2024 Company of the Year — is reframing its focus to inclusion and belonging. \nIn late November, Walmart confirmed to Yahoo Finance it will no longer use the term DEI or participate in the corporate equality rating system created by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC). It plans to shutter its $100 million Center for Racial Equity, among other actions like moving away from the term Latinx. \nThe retailer is still \"the same,\" Walmart's chief people officer Donna Morris told Yahoo Finance in a Dec. 2 interview. \n\"Our values are absolutely not changing, the specific initiatives or terms, they change over time,\" she continued. The company started moving to \"belonging\" in early 2023, though Morris said the move wasn't due to pressure from any specific group.\n\"When you talk about diversity, equity, inclusion, all in part, there can be communities, and often the largest communities, that step back and say, 'Geez, I'm not sure if I'm even actually included',\" Morris explained of the decision.\nAfter Floyd's murder, a \"majority\" of companies felt the need to boost their DEI efforts, but now they are reevaluating. \"What we observed and felt was really important is that everyone was part of that work, and that's why we really made the shift,\" Morris said. \n\nPresident-elect Donald Trump's plans to target DEI policies will likely further hasten its decline. After the Supreme Court shut down affirmative action at colleges in June, a plethora of corporations followed suit. \nLowe's (LOW), Tractor Supply (TSCO), John Deere (DE), and Harley-Davidson (HOG) scaled back their DEI policies. The University of Michigan ended required diversity statements.\nRecently, a federal appeals court blocked the Nasdaq's requirement that listed companies have at least one woman, person of color, or LGBTQ member on their board.\nConservative activist Robby Starbuck, whose mission is to \"eliminate wokeness from the corporate world and country,\" told Yahoo Finance that Walmart's move was his first \"win\" post-election.\n\"Companies not only have to consider the financial effects ... [but] Trump is president now,\" said Starbuck. \"It's going to make them more inclined to quickly change rather than hold out.\"\nWalmart investors seemingly shrugged off the news. \nShares are up 4.6% since Starbuck revealed Walmart's DEI change on X (Walmart did not release an official statement). The stock is up a whopping 77% in 2024 after it posted a string of earnings beats and strong growth.\n\nDiversity's impact on financial performance. \nBased on a survey this year of 400 C-suite and HR leaders, executive search firm Bridge Partners found leaders said the top benefit of DEI efforts is a positive impact on recruiting, hiring, and retention. \nLess than 40% of respondents said it leads to bottom-line and top-line growth, while 22% said it improves share price. \nSome companies are convinced of DEI's merits. \nE.l.f. Beauty's (ELF) splashy campaign, dubbed \"So Many 'Dicks,'\" is part of its goal to double the rate of women and diverse members added to corporate boards by 2027.  \nIts own board is comprised of 78% women and 44% diverse directors. \n\"There's a strong correlation between board diversity and the results,\" e.l.f. Beauty CEO Tarang Amin said on Yahoo Finance's Market Domination. The makeup retailer recently posted its 23rd consecutive quarter of net sales growth and market share gains.\nIn the past five years, its shares are up roughly 780%, handily beating the S&P 500's 90% gain. \n\"Companies with above-median board gender diversity see 15% higher return on equity (ROE) and 50% lower earnings risk one year out compared with their less diverse peers,\" according to Bank of America data quoted in a research study e.l.f. conducted with North Carolina A&T University.\n\nBloomberg Intelligence's Women Capital 2025 report found companies with a \"greater number of women on their boards have delivered 2-5% higher returns in developed markets and 2-6% lower volatility in emerging markets.\" \nBloomberg's chief ESG strategist, Adeline Diab, said results \"suggest a wider recognition of diversity as a quality signal that can reinforce investment decisions and enhance board dialogue.\"\nSimilarly, a McKinsey report spanning 1,265 companies found that diverse executive teams led to a higher likelihood of financial outperformance. \n\nOn the flip side, research from University of North Carolina professors Sekou Bermiss and John Hand and Texas A&M's Jeremiah Green suggests diversity in top management did not result in measurable financial differences.  \n\"We did not find any really statistically reliable correlations between today's \"measure of diversity\" in executives [both in terms of race and gender] and subsequent one-year firm financial performance,\" Hand told Yahoo Finance.\n\"To find very little positive, very little significance, one way or the other, was a bit surprising,\" Bermiss said. He added while there are certain companies that would be \"cases for diversity driving profit,\" the effect disappears when looking at the average for the entire S&P 500. \nThe future of corporate hiring \nMorris argued Walmart's decision will help it \"attract, develop and retain the very best talent,\" creating the \"broadest workforce.\"\n\"Rolling back the activities that they're [Walmart] doing internally ... will have a knock-on effect on their external sales,\" Tory Clarke of Bridge Partners told Yahoo Finance over the phone.\nThe retailer could lose talent, and some stores' workforces won't reflect the community they serve, which will impact innovation, culture, and customers' experience.\n\nEthan Peck of the conservative think tank National Center for Public Policy, which challenged Nasdaq's diversity rules that led to the court's ruling, said dropping DEI will benefit corporate stakeholders in the long run. \nHiring \"the best people for the job over time — that's prioritizing excellence over ideology,\" he said. \"That will make the company more productive, more efficient, and more innovative. That will show over time in the stock price.\" \nDartmouth professor Adam Kleinbaum said, similar to Walmart, many companies may rebrand their DEI efforts to embed them as an HR function.\n\"Inclusion, making people feel like they are valued and important parts of the organization ... that leads to better collaboration ... better retention, which drives down HR cost,\" Kleinbaum said over the phone.\nWalmart may have been the latest, but it won't be the last.\n\"It's pretty clear that we're at a moment in history when the pendulum is beginning to swing back in the other direction,\" Kleinbaum said.\nInvestors seek out opportunities around DEI and anti-DEI\nAzoria Partners founder James Fishback is gearing up to launch a new ETF in early 2025 under the ticker SPXM. It will focus on \"eliminating these anti-meritocratic laggards.\"\nWhile Fishback didn't disclose companies that will be in the index, he said Starbucks (SBUX) 's hiring targets are the reason it won't be in the fund. In 2022, Starbucks set out to achieve Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) representation of at least 30% at all corporate levels and at least 40% of all retail and manufacturing roles in the US by 2025. It has since hit the targets.\nHowever, in March, Starbucks dropped executive compensation packages tied to DEI efforts.\nMorgan Stanley's Calvert US Large-Cap Diversity Research Index focuses on DEI. The index, launched in June 2020, returned 25.82% in the past year. It launched an ETF (CDEI) last year.\nOther funds that specialize in DEI or ESG include BlackRock's iShares Refinitiv Inclusion and Diversity UCITS ETF (OPEN.L) and Impact Shares' NAACP Minority Empowerment ETF (NACP).\n\nMorgan Stanley, along with Calvert, said it evaluates companies across its workforce and DEI policies to find ones worth including in its Calvert index. Each company is categorized as a DEI leader, improver, neutral, or lagger. Leaders and improvers are included in the fund. \nChipmaker AMD (AMD), for example, was considered neutral in 2023, but as the team tried to increase gender diversity among new hires and its talent pipeline, it's now in the index as an improver.  \nCalvert managing director of responsible investing strategy Anthony Eames said the interest in the index \"has been steady.\"\n\"There is a precedent for investors to sort of vote with their dollars, if they will. This is an interesting investment concept. ... More people are discovering in and are energized about having part of their portfolio, sort of leverage to this theme.\"\nRead more about Yahoo Finance's 2024 company awards:\n\nWalmart is the 2024 Yahoo Finance Company of the Year\nHow Walmart's $90 billion Sam's Club is aiming to take down Costco\nNvidia, GM, Walmart, Palantir, Tesla, Meta, and others battle this Yahoo Finance awards season\n\nBrooke DiPalma is a senior reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@yahoofinance.com.\nClick here for all of the latest retail stock news and events to better inform your investing strategy","kind":"highlight","is_publish_news":true,"is_publish_highlight":false,"is_publish_live":false,"is_publish_wemedia":null,"editions":null,"column":"","sentiment":"0","news_tag":"","news_rank":0,"symbols":[],"gpt_button":0},"commentList":[],"isCommentEnd":true,"newsSizeData":{"likeSize":0,"commentSize":0,"repostSize":0,"favoriteSize":0,"likeStatus":false,"favoriteStatus":false},"APP":{"userAgent":"Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com)","isDev":false,"isTTM":true,"deviceId":"web-server-community-laohu8-v3","version":"4.29.3","shortVersion":"4.29.3","platform":"web","vendor":"web","appName":"ttm","isIOS":false,"isAndroid":false,"isTiger":false,"isTHS":false,"isWeiXin":false,"isWeiXinMini":false,"isWeiBo":false,"isQQ":false,"isBaiduSwan":false,"isBaiduBox":false,"isDingTalk":false,"isToutiao":false,"isOnePlus":false,"isHuaWei":false,"isXiaomi":false,"isXiaomiWebView":false,"isOppo":false,"isVivo":false,"isSamsung":false,"isMobile":false},"href":"/m/news/2492625709"}