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STORY: Walmart is getting out of the healthcare business.

The world’s largest retailer said on Tuesday that it's closing all 51 of its health clinics as well as all of its virtual healthcare operations.

In its announcement, Walmart called it a "difficult decision" but that it is "determined there is not a sustainable business model for us to continue."

The move is a surprising reversal of plans, as Walmart just last year said it would nearly double its number of health center locations.

But now it sees a “challenging reimbursement environment and escalating operating costs” that hamper profitability.

Its health centers, which house doctors and dentists and are typically located next to Walmart Supercenters, are spread across five states, including Texas and Florida.

All will be shut within 30 to 90 days.

Companies such as Walmart, Walgreens, Amazon and CVS expanded into providing healthcare services during the past five years, seeing opportunities in the highly fragmented U.S. healthcare system. But it has not been clear that consumers want such services from retailers or that they are profitable.

Shares of Walmart were down more than 1.5% in Tuesday morning trading.