Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Bought by NorthRock Partners LLC

NorthRock Partners LLC grew its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 36.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,550 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 21,556 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $8,301,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $150.00 price target on Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and set a $145.00 target price (up from $128.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.76.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reported continued digital strength: eCommerce grew ~24% in the fiscal fourth quarter, reinforcing its omnichannel momentum and supporting revenue beat and modest upside to guidance — a clear near-term growth driver. Walmart eCommerce Up 24: Can Digital Momentum Continue?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and portfolio shops remain constructive: Tigress Financial reiterated a Buy and raised its price target to $150, citing Walmart’s shift toward tech-driven omnichannel operations — a signal of upward analyst sentiment. Tigress Financial Sees Walmart Inc. (WMT) as Tech-Driven Retail Leader
• Positive Sentiment: Flipkart IPO progress (Walmart-backed) remains a potential longer-term upside — an equity event that could unlock value and generate cash/strategic optionality. Walmart-backed Flipkart preps for an IPO as early as this year
• Neutral Sentiment: Schaeffer’s options commentary flagged bullish setups and the possibility of further record highs for WMT — useful for options traders but not a broad fundamental catalyst. Walmart Stock Could Nab More Record Highs
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysis pieces (The Motley Fool) flag that Walmart’s digital push could pay off if fulfillment economics and ROIC improve; it’s strategic upside but execution-dependent. Will Walmart’s Digital Push Pay Off in 2026?
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart is referenced in pieces about stock splits and retail-focused ETFs — background thematic support but not an immediate catalyst. 3 ETFs That Could Benefit as Consumers Tighten Their Budgets (WMT)
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical risk: coverage notes the Iran war and possible Strait of Hormuz disruptions could push supply-chain costs and retail prices higher — a margin and inflation risk for Walmart. How the Iran war could start to impact U.S. retail prices
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and sentiment pressure: commentary (247WallStreet) highlights retail investor criticism of WMT’s ~46x multiple and recent bearish social sentiment, raising the risk of multiple compression if growth disappoints. Reddit’s Loudest Walmart Critics Have a Point About That 46x Multiple

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total transaction of $1,574,868.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 727,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,251,328.45. This trade represents a 1.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $4,158,004.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,082,852. This represents a 6.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 279,703 shares of company stock valued at $34,140,843 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT opened at $126.52 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $79.81 and a 1-year high of $134.69. The stock has a market cap of $1.01 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $123.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm 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 was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $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. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Walmart Company Profile

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.