IFP Advisors Inc Grows Stock Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 134,634 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 13,793 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Walmart were worth $13,879,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 435,652,710 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $44,898,368,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835,200 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Walmart by 1.2% during the third 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. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,367,770,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,298,623 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,153,176,000 after purchasing an additional 634,211 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 31,973,329 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,126,775,000 after buying an additional 1,098,342 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 402,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,772,492.88. This trade represents a 15.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,082,852. This trade represents a 6.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 265,153 shares of company stock worth $32,465,924 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $121.98 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.81 and a fifty-two week high of $134.69. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $123.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $112.53. The firm has a market cap of $972.47 billion, a PE ratio of 44.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 0.66.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The company had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly 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. Sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on WMT shares. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 price objective on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. HSBC downgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $122.00 to $131.00 in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 price target on Walmart in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $138.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.76.

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?

Walmart 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.