Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT) CEO Doug McMillon was paid 976 times a median associate in the world's largest retail company over the last fiscal year.

What Happened: McMillon was paid $26.97 million last fiscal year as compared to the annual total compensation of a median associate which was $27,642, the company said in a filing on Thursday.

As of December 31, 2023, Walmart employed about 2.15 associates worldwide, with over 2 million employed just in the U.S. The company has over 5000 stores in the U.S. and accumulated consolidated revenue of $648.1 billion and consolidated operating income of $27 billion over the past fiscal year.

McMillon had a base salary of over $1.5 million, received stock awards of $19.61 million and other compensation of about $5.85 million, taking his cumulative salary for the fiscal year ended Jan. 31 to $26.97 million or 6.6% higher than the fiscal year before.  

Why It Matters: The pay disparity between CEOs and their employees has been a contentious issue for some time. The significant difference in McMillon's compensation compared to the median Walmart employee's earnings highlights this ongoing debate. This disparity is even more pronounced when compared to other retail giants like Target and Costco, where the CEO-to-worker pay ratios are significantly lower.

Earlier, this month planemaker Boeing said that the company paid its outgoing CEO David Calhoun $32.8 million as total compensation in 2023. While Calhoun's salary only accounts for $1.4 million of his total compensation, he received $30.2 million in stock awards and $1.2 million as all other compensation last year, Boeing said in a regulatory filing.

Price Action: Walmart stock fell  0.08% to $60.16 per share on Friday, according to Benzinga Pro. As of the stock's previous close, the company has a market cap of $485.28 billion, significantly higher than Target Corp's $75.92 billion or Costco Wholesale Corporation's $320.15 billion.