The U.S. government has dropped a claim against retail giant Walmart (WMT) that it cost its delivery drivers around $10 million in junk bank fees.
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Lawsuit Dropped
The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) dropped a federal lawsuit against Walmart and the workforce payments firm Branch.
Last December the CFPB accused the two companies of forcing more than a million delivery drivers into using bank accounts that cost them more than $10 million in junk fees.
The CFPB said in a lawsuit that Walmart had told “last mile” drivers in its Spark Driver program that it would fire them unless they collected their pay in Branch accounts opened without their consent.
At the time Walmart and Branch both rejected the CFPB’s allegations, accusing the agency of failing to allow them time to offer explanations and of “rushing” to file the lawsuit.
Not Trump’s Favorite Agency
Following the dropping of the claim Walmart said in a statement that it was pleased with the CFPB’s decision. It reiterated its view that the claim was rushed, erroneous and “never should have been filed in the first place.”
Walmart has seemingly been helped by the change in administration since January with President Trump keen to, according to a Reuters report, minimize CFPB oversight of consumer finance. Trump has even called for the agency to be “eliminated.”
Is WMT a Good Stock to Buy Now?
On TipRanks, WMT has a Strong Buy consensus based on 29 Buy and 2 Hold ratings. Its highest price target is $120. WMT stock’s consensus price target is $108.71 implying an 12.29% upside.
