Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT – Get Free Report) shares rose 3.9% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $127.30 and last traded at $127.26. Approximately 20,151,006 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average daily volume of 30,075,289 shares. The stock had previously closed at $122.49.
Walmart News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Walmart is rolling out digital price tags across U.S. stores to improve store efficiency and help manage margins — a direct operational lever for profitability that investors view as a tangible way to protect margins and update pricing capabilities. Walmart’s Digital Price Tags Put Valuation And Margin Story In Focus
- Positive Sentiment: Sam’s Club is raising membership prices effective May 1; higher fees should boost membership revenue and average spend per member, supporting near‑term top‑line and margin outlook. New Sam’s Club Price Hikes Take Effect May 1. Should You Buy Walmart Stock First?
- Neutral Sentiment: Analysts debate whether Walmart’s strong share-price run (roughly 51% over a year) still leaves room for upside; valuation questions may temper rapid price appreciation even as fundamentals look solid. Is Walmart (WMT) Still Reasonably Priced After A 51% One Year Share Price Surge?
- Neutral Sentiment: Longer‑term AI/“agentic commerce” trends could benefit large omnichannel retailers with scale (including Walmart), but the timing and magnitude of that tailwind are uncertain. 2 Stocks I’d Add to the Shopping Cart for the Agentic Commerce Revolution
- Negative Sentiment: Competition from specialized retail channels (e.g., the U.S. Navy Exchange and other niche suppliers) is pressuring share in some segments and is forcing pricey strategic responses by those operators — a reminder that Walmart still faces margin and share pressures in some markets. Why the U.S. Navy’s retail business is fighting Walmart and Amazon to fund its own future
- Negative Sentiment: Short‑term volatility: recent sessions have seen WMT snap a multi‑day winning streak and intraday weakness, reflecting profit‑taking and sensitivity to market moves despite underlying fundamentals. Walmart shares snapped six-session winning streak
Analyst Ratings Changes
WMT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $135.76.
Walmart Stock Up 3.9%
The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 trillion, a PE ratio of 46.45, a PEG ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $125.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $114.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.
Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.37 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. The business’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, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.
Walmart Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.2475 per share. 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 payout ratio is currently 36.13%.
Insider Activity
In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.17, for a total transaction of $2,313,804.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,274,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $509,434,589.52. The trade was a 0.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total transaction of $9,430,445.99. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 402,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,772,492.88. This represents a 15.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 274,278 shares of company stock worth $33,825,793 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart
A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $49,015,626,000 after purchasing an additional 4,304,436 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $19,046,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,364 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $11,426,753,000 after purchasing an additional 6,517,394 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $6,458,529,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,526,238,000 after buying an additional 328,229 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
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.
Further Reading
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