Investment Research Partners LLC Makes New $1.24 Million Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Investment Research Partners LLC bought a new position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 12,053 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,235,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,709,000. CWM LLC grew its position in Walmart by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,175,703 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $121,168,000 after acquiring an additional 229,220 shares during the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 5,091,126 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $497,771,000 after purchasing an additional 42,645 shares in the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. increased its holdings in Walmart by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 63,782 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,567,000 after purchasing an additional 9,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors raised its position in Walmart by 5.2% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 293,866 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,286,000 after purchasing an additional 14,487 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 price target (up from $108.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.76.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $121.98 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $972.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $123.83 and a 200-day moving average of $112.53.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion for 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%.The firm’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business 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 research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart won U.S. patents for two machine‑learning systems to inform item pricing — a potential margin and competitive improvement if deployed at scale for dynamic pricing and promotions. Walmart Secures Machine Learning Patents for Pricing Items
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart Marketplace expands capabilities via a verified Doba integration, speeding onboarding and automated dropshipping for sellers — supports marketplace assortment and low‑capital inventory expansion. Doba Announces Verified Technical Integration with Walmart Marketplace to Empower Dropshipping Sellers
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/media pieces highlight Walmart’s faster‑growing e‑commerce and advertising businesses and its AI initiatives — reinforcing the view of higher‑margin revenue streams beyond physical retail. 1 Stock I Plan to Load Up On in 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary notes Walmart as a recession‑resilient consumer staple, which supports defensive demand for shares in macro uncertainty — a structural positive but not an immediate catalyst. Predictions Markets Are Pointing to a Potential Recession. 3 Stocks to Buy.
• Negative Sentiment: A shareholder law firm launched an investigation into Walmart’s board over alleged deceptive pay practices for Spark drivers — raises governance, litigation and reputational risk that can pressure the stock until resolved. Berger Montague PC Investigates Walmart Inc.’s Board of Directors for Breach of Fiduciary Duty (NASDAQ: WMT)
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon rolled out 1‑hour and 3‑hour shipping in major U.S. markets — intensifying delivery competition and potentially pressuring Walmart’s value proposition and margins on rapid fulfillment. Amazon launches 1-hour shipping in US cities to challenge Walmart
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart‑backed PhonePe paused IPO plans amid Middle East market volatility — delays potential monetization/valuation realization and is a reminder external market conditions can affect Walmart’s non‑core asset strategies. Walmart-backed PhonePe pauses IPO plans as Middle East conflict fuels market volatility
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts warn WMT’s valuation looks rich given the premium multiple assigned for e‑commerce and advertising growth — valuation concerns can amplify downside on disappointing news. Walmart’s Valuation Looks Rich: Should You Stay Invested in the Stock?

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $1,214,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 108,294 shares in the company, valued at $13,153,389.24. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 533,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,082,852. This represents a 6.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 265,153 shares of company stock worth $32,465,924. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.