JT Stratford LLC Acquires 14,382 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

JT Stratford LLC grew its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 27.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 67,159 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,382 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 0.9% of JT Stratford LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. JT Stratford LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $6,921,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cambria Investment Management L.P. raised its stake in Walmart by 981.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P. now owns 32,029 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,301,000 after acquiring an additional 29,066 shares during the period. Rench Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.1% in the third quarter. Rench Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,605 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $372,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Walmart by 0.6% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,488,205 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,596,205,000 after purchasing an additional 88,544 shares during the period. Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter. Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. now owns 167,896 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $17,303,000 after buying an additional 24,858 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Insigneo Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 55,304 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,700,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 target price on Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 price target on Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.42.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT opened at $127.81 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.79. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $79.81 and a 52-week high of $134.69. The firm has a market cap of $1.02 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s fifty day moving average is $121.39 and its 200-day moving average is $110.68.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter 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. Sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors 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 yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’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 in the company, valued at $87,251,328.45. The trade was a 1.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.83, for a total value of $2,171,291.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,315,333 shares in the company, valued at approximately $482,583,689.39. This represents a 0.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 279,703 shares of company stock valued at $34,140,843 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart-backed PhonePe is planning an India IPO targeting a $9–$10.5B valuation — a potential near-term monetization event for Walmart’s investment and a driver of investor sentiment around international growth and fintech upside. Exclusive: Walmart-backed PhonePe targets up to $10.5 billion valuation in India IPO, sources say
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst / blog bullish coverage reiterates Walmart’s strengths (scale, operational discipline, e‑commerce and ad/digital growth) and argues WMT remains a compelling defensive plus growth-ish retail holding — supportive for investor confidence and multiple expansion. Is Walmart Inc. (WMT) A Good Stock To Buy Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Industry coverage highlighting Walmart’s durable same‑store sales, digital/ad revenue, and AI investments frames the company as positioned for continued steady growth — a reason long‑term investors may hold or buy. 3 Things to Know About Walmart Stock Before You Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart opened a next‑generation Supercenter in The Villages, FL — incremental store growth and local assortment (including Fresh From Florida) support execution but are small relative to company scale. Walmart Opens Next Generation Supercenter in The Villages, Highlights Florida-Grown Products
• Neutral Sentiment: New product listings (Liquid Youth Sparkling Collagen Water) at select Walmart stores broaden grocery/beverage assortment and show ongoing vendor/brand acceptance — positive for merchandising but immaterial to top-line at scale. Liquid Youth™ Expands Retail Footprint with Launch at Target and Walmart
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale — EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares (~$2.56M at ~$127.79), reducing his stake ~3.95%; insider sales can create short‑term negative optics even if routine. Insider sale: John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares
• Negative Sentiment: Target’s reported turnaround and upgraded outlook lift competitive pressure in the big‑box segment; improving Target momentum is a relative risk to Walmart’s market‑share and margin narrative. Target’s 2026 Turnaround: Analysts Bullish as Growth Returns

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.