Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Bought by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 95.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 731,487 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 356,906 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $75,387,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Collier Financial purchased a new position in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth $30,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 212.6% in the 3rd quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 322 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. CICC Research started coverage on Walmart in a research report on Friday, December 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $147.00 target price (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.76.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $123.49 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $79.81 and a 12 month 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 firm has a market capitalization of $984.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.07, a P/E/G ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $122.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.53.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The company had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. 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, research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.2475 per share. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.13%.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total transaction of $4,158,004.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 533,466 shares in the company, valued at $65,082,852. The trade was a 6.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total value of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. The trade was a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 279,703 shares of company stock worth $34,140,843 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart-backed Flipkart is reportedly preparing for an IPO as soon as this year — an eventual listing could unlock value for Walmart’s investment, attract new investor interest, and be a longer-term positive for WMT’s equity story. Walmart-backed Flipkart preps for an IPO as early as this year
• Positive Sentiment: BofA interprets OpenAI’s pullback on direct shopping inside ChatGPT as a net positive for Walmart, as it reduces a near-term competitive threat to Walmart’s e‑commerce and advertising growth plans. That view supports WMT’s digital/omnichannel outlook. BofA Calls Open AI News a Positive for Walmart Inc. (WMT)
• Positive Sentiment: An idea piece highlights ETFs that could benefit as consumers tighten budgets, signaling potential sector tailwinds for discount and warehouse retailers like Walmart if shoppers remain value‑focused. 3 ETFs That Could Benefit as Consumers Tighten Their Budgets (WMT)
• Positive Sentiment: 7 Brew is rolling out Ready‑to‑Drink coffees in Walmart stores across Arkansas — a small merchandising win that can incrementally boost in‑store sales and assortment breadth. 7 Brew Launches Ready‑to‑Drink Coffees in Walmart Stores Across Arkansas
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/momentum coverage notes recent share-price moves (strong 1‑year TSR and mixed short‑term performance). This piece provides context for why some investors may be trimming positions after a run. A Look At Walmart (WMT) Valuation After Recent Share Price Momentum
• Neutral Sentiment: Worldly hired a former Walmart human‑rights senior director to lead social‑risk strategy — notable for reputation and supply‑chain governance but unlikely to move the stock materially. Worldly Hires Former Walmart Human Rights Senior Director to Lead Social Risk Strategy
• Negative Sentiment: An analyst/compare piece argues Costco may be the better buy given its membership economics and comp performance — such comparisons can weigh on Walmart’s relative valuation and encourage rotation into perceived higher‑quality retail names. Walmart vs. Costco: Which Stock Is the Better Buy?

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.