Park Avenue Securities LLC Acquires 7,853 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 279,956 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 7,853 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $31,190,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WMT. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth $5,367,770,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 9,648.7% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,486,374 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,123,138,000 after buying an additional 11,368,549 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 188.1% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,663,172 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,199,907,000 after buying an additional 7,614,172 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 20.5% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 23,497,921 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,413,236,000 after buying an additional 4,004,277 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 3,835,200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $145.00 price target on Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 price objective on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Walmart from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart 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 assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.76.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Growing AI narrative and modest analyst upside: coverage notes that Walmart’s AI investments (supply-chain, store ops) are reshaping its growth story and one valuation model nudged fair value slightly higher to ~$136, supporting longer-term upside. This bolsters bullish investor interest in WMT as a tech-enabled retailer. How Walmart (WMT) Is Rewriting Its Story With AI Hype And Valuation Questions
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/technical support for defensive retail: coverage from Barron’s highlights Walmart alongside other defensive retail names on both technical and fundamental grounds, which can attract risk-off flows and relative-strength buyers in uncertain markets. Walmart, Ross Stores, and Other ‘Defensive’ Retail Stocks
• Positive Sentiment: Market narrative that Walmart is an AI play: features arguing Walmart (and Target) are meaningful AI plays could lift investor conviction around margin improvement and efficiency gains over time. Forget Chipmakers: Walmart and Target Are the Real AI Plays
• Neutral Sentiment: Higher-than-usual call buying: intraday activity showed a ~42% increase in call option volume, which signals bullish positioning but could be speculative or short-term. Watch whether this leads to sustained buying or just short-term gamma flow.
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO transition focus: commentary on managing and positioning around CEO transitions notes both risk and opportunity — transitions can create volatility but also potential strategic shifts. Investors should watch messaging and execution from leadership. How to Play 3 Major CEO Transitions in Early 2026 (WMT)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by CEO: CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares (~1.87% reduction in his position) in a disclosed SEC filing — insider sales can be interpreted negatively by some investors even if part of routine diversification. Insider Sale SEC Filing

Walmart Stock Down 1.7%

NASDAQ WMT opened at $119.02 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $79.81 and a 1-year high of $134.69. The company has a market capitalization of $948.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.44, a PEG ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $124.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.66 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. Equities analysts forecast 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.13%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total value of $1,574,868.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 727,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,251,328.45. The trade was a 1.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.27, for a total transaction of $2,445,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 506,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,962,034.28. The trade was a 3.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 274,278 shares of company stock valued at $33,605,809. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s 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.