Sonoma Allocations LLC Makes New Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Sonoma Allocations LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 8,797 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $937,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Walmart by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 431,817,510 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,223,116,000 after buying an additional 5,856,468 shares during the period. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 397,264.9% during the 2nd quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 104,514,912 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,496,702,000 after buying an additional 104,488,610 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.3% in the second 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 last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the second quarter worth $5,367,770,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Walmart by 3.6% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 31,973,329 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,126,775,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098,342 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays reiterated its Buy rating on WMT, reinforcing institutional confidence in Walmart’s outlook and supporting demand for the stock. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho raised its price target to $125 (from $115) and kept an Outperform/Overweight view, signaling upward analyst momentum that can boost buying interest. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo also lifted its target to $130 and remains constructive on Walmart, adding to the analyst support narrative behind the rally. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart launched “Better Care Services,” a digital healthcare platform and lowered prices on some health items — a strategic push that could expand margins and services revenue over time. Analysts are re-assessing valuation with this new health push in mind. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart added Shishir Mehrotra (ex-Grammarly/Superhuman) to its board — a governance move emphasizing AI and e‑commerce expertise that investors view as strengthening Walmart’s tech roadmap. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart launched a celebrity fashion line (Millie Bobby Brown) aimed at teens and young women — a branding/merchandising boost but likely modest near-term financial impact. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market coverage notes (Zacks, Kalkine, AmericanBankingNews) show elevated investor attention and a consensus “moderate buy,” which keeps the stock in focus but doesn’t single-handedly move fundamentals. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon received approval to build a 225,000 sq ft Walmart-style supercenter near Chicago that would blend in-store shopping with fulfillment — a clear competitive threat to Walmart’s grocery and omnichannel footprint in key markets. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Deutsche Bank downgraded Walmart from Buy to Hold with a $119 target, signaling some analyst caution (limits upside relative to recent price moves) and adding selling pressure for more risk‑sensitive investors. Read More.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.57, for a total transaction of $2,127,411.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 4,334,747 shares in the company, valued at $474,958,228.79. This represents a 0.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.78, for a total value of $1,414,612.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 892,940 shares in the company, valued at $96,241,073.20. This trade represents a 1.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 125,628 shares of company stock worth $13,690,065 over the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Trading Up 1.3%

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $114.53 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $109.73 and its 200-day moving average is $103.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $79.81 and a 12 month high of $117.45. The firm has a market cap of $912.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.05, a P/E/G ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.66.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. DA Davidson set a $130.00 target price on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Evercore ISI set a $120.00 price objective on Walmart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $128.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Thirty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.37.

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.