Retail giant Walmart (WMT) has sold its entire stake in Chinese e-commerce company JD.com (JD) that was valued at $3.74 billion U.S.
The sale is significant as Walmart had long been the largest shareholder of JD.com and maintained its stake in the Chinese company for eight years.
In a news release, Walmart said that it had sold its stake in JD.com as it plans to focus on its own operations within mainland China.
In particular, Walmart said that it is looking to grow its warehouse business called “Sam’s Club” in China. Sam’s Club competes directly against Costco (COST).
The sale also comes as Chinese e-commerce concerns struggle with poor profit margins, a sluggish economy, and weak consumer demand in the nation of 1.4 billion people.
Shares of JD.com have declined 70% since they peaked during the Covid-19 rally of 2021.
At $28.19 U.S. per share, JD’s stock is currently trading right around the price it was at when Walmart first took a position in the company back in 2016.
The stock of Walmart has risen 42% in the last 12 months to trade at $74.54 U.S. per share.
