Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Increases Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 15,488,205 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 88,544 shares during the period. Walmart makes up approximately 0.3% of Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,596,205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 0.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 435,652,710 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $44,898,368,000 after acquiring an additional 3,835,200 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 94,557,532 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $9,199,712,000 after purchasing an additional 263,718 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth about $5,367,770,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,298,623 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,153,176,000 after purchasing an additional 634,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Walmart by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 31,973,329 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,126,775,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098,342 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reinstated coverage with a Buy rating and a $150 price target, arguing Walmart is well positioned as a consumer hedge in a bifurcated economy, which supports upside to the stock. The Great Divide: Is Walmart the Ultimate Hedge for 2026?
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s Sam’s Club reported a 2.9% sales rise, +5.3% traffic and e‑commerce growth of 23%, signaling membership and digital momentum that should help margins and comps. Walmart’s Sam’s Club Sales Rise 2.9%
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart expanded its grocery/CPG assortment as brands (e.g., Liquid Youth) roll out at select Walmart stores — incremental SKU additions can modestly boost grocery sales and private‑label/commercial partnerships. Liquid Youth™ Expands Retail Footprint with Launch at Target and Walmart
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/press pieces highlight Walmart’s durable same‑store sales, wide moat, growth in e‑commerce, digital advertising and AI initiatives — positive fundamentals but already partly reflected in the rally. 3 Things to Know About Walmart Stock Before You Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes and valuation checks question whether the stock has run ahead of fundamentals after a ~32% one‑year rally — investors are debating growth vs. stretched multiples. Is Walmart (WMT) Still Attractive After 32% One Year Share Price Rally?
• Negative Sentiment: Major shareholders sold large blocks: reports show the Walton family trust sold roughly $380M of stock over five days and another report says Walmart’s largest shareholder offloaded about $220M — heavy insider selling can create near‑term supply pressure and raise investor concern. Walton Family Trust Dumps $380 Million in Walmart Stock Over Five Days
• Negative Sentiment: Additional reporting highlights another large ~$220M block sale by a major shareholder, reinforcing the headline risk from concentrated selling. Walmart’s Largest Shareholder Dumps $220 Million in Shares

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $134.00 target price (up from $129.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, December 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total value of $2,460,201.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,023,209 shares in the company, valued at $509,780,812.39. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.10, for a total value of $1,694,437.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 591,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,308,944.40. This represents a 2.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 259,703 shares of company stock valued at $31,585,043 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

NASDAQ WMT opened at $127.91 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.68, a PEG ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $79.81 and a 1-year high of $134.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $121.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $110.56.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a $0.2475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.31%.

About Walmart

Walmart is a multinational retail corporation that operates a broad portfolio of store formats and digital services. Its core business includes large-format supercenters, discount department stores, neighborhood grocery stores and a membership warehouse chain, Sam’s Club. The company’s merchandising mix covers groceries, household goods, apparel, electronics and pharmacy services, supplemented by private-label products and category-specific offerings. Walmart pairs its physical store network with online platforms and mobile applications to provide omnichannel shopping, fulfillment and delivery options for consumers and businesses.

The company was founded by Sam Walton, who opened the first store in Rogers, Arkansas in 1962; it is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.