Machina Capital S.A.S. Raises Stake in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Machina Capital S.A.S. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 177.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 19,783 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,653 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $2,039,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 1.4% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 431,817,510 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,223,116,000 after buying an additional 5,856,468 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 263,718 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Walmart in the second quarter valued at approximately $5,367,770,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Walmart by 3.6% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 31,973,329 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,126,775,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098,342 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 23.5% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 19,493,644 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,902,775,000 after purchasing an additional 3,710,506 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.27, for a total transaction of $2,445,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 506,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,962,034.28. This represents a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total transaction of $9,430,445.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 402,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,772,492.88. This trade represents a 15.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 229,196 shares of company stock valued at $26,957,858 over the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $132.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday. CICC Research started coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, December 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $119.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 price objective (up previously from $108.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Thirty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.19.

Walmart Stock Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $128.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 0.65. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $79.81 and a one year high of $129.41. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $106.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.31% and a net margin of 3.26%.The company had revenue of $179.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $175.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.58 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart crossed the $1 trillion market‑cap mark, lifting sentiment that its investments in e‑commerce, AI and higher‑margin services are re‑rating the stock. Walmart cracks into the $1 trillion club
• Positive Sentiment: Leadership continuity with an internal CEO transition (John Furner) reduces execution risk as management continues the digital/fulfillment strategy. Walmart Names New CEO
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart+ membership appears to be accelerating, supporting recurring revenue and a path to higher margin services that help justify the premium multiple. Walmart paid membership growth
• Positive Sentiment: Brick‑and‑mortar expansion and vendor rollouts (new Supercenter in Jacksonville; national placement for consumer brands) support same‑store footprint and wholesale revenue. Walmart Opens Next Generation Supercenter in Jacksonville
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage is broadly positive (many Buy/Moderate Buy ratings) but consensus price targets are near current levels — suggesting upside now depends on continued execution rather than multiple expansion alone. WMT Joins the $1 Trillion Club
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: EVP Donna Morris and EVP John Rainey both disclosed multi‑thousand share sales this week, which can create short‑term selling pressure or be read as executives monetizing gains. Donna Morris insider sale John Rainey insider sale
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive and valuation risks: Amazon’s ramp in fast grocery/delivery raises fulfillment costs and margin pressure; at the same time Walmart now trades at elevated multiples, so any slowdown in sales/margin mix could prompt a pullback. Amazon physical grocery push Staples look frothy (Barron’s)

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.