Talon Private Wealth LLC Makes New Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Talon Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 67,323 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $8,367,000. Walmart makes up approximately 1.1% of Talon Private Wealth LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WMT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $6,458,529,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 188.1% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,663,172 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,199,907,000 after acquiring an additional 7,614,172 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,426,753,000 after purchasing an additional 6,517,394 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $592,848,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $49,015,626,000 after purchasing an additional 4,304,436 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is attracting more higher-income customers through low prices, faster delivery and a broader product assortment. This could support sales growth and strengthen its competitive position beyond its traditional value-focused customer base. Can Walmart Sustain Gains Among Higher-Income Customers?
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is using artificial intelligence behind the scenes to reduce costs and improve operating efficiency rather than selling AI products directly. Its scale, strong recent earnings and analyst Buy ratings support the view that technology could enhance profitability over time. These 3 AI Winners Don’t Sell the Tech—They Use It
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart recently outperformed the broader market during a trading session, indicating continued momentum, although the report provides no new company-specific catalyst. Walmart Beats Stock Market Upswing
• Neutral Sentiment: Amazon overtook Walmart on the Fortune Global 500 revenue ranking, ending Walmart’s 12-year run at No. 1. The change highlights Amazon’s expanding scale and Walmart’s intense competition in retail and ecommerce, but it does not directly alter Walmart’s earnings outlook. Amazon Tops Fortune Global 500 List
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts warn that Walmart may be expensive after its substantial five-year return. A discounted cash-flow analysis suggests the stock trades above intrinsic value, while a reported salad recall adds a potential near-term reputational and operational risk. Walmart Stock Could Be Pricey After the Salad Recall
• Negative Sentiment: Another valuation review says Walmart’s durable scale advantage is not enough to offset an elevated share price relative to projected forward earnings, limiting upside if growth slows. Walmart Is at $108: Why Investors Should Pause

Walmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $113.10 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $900.06 billion, a PE ratio of 39.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.60. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $95.42 and a 12 month high of $135.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $115.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.02.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Erste Group Bank lowered Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group set a $141.00 target price on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total transaction of $1,308,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,300,550.91. This trade represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total transaction of $2,303,320.08. Following the sale, the director owned 4,174,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,230,306.77. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 67,729 shares of company stock valued at $8,124,931. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.