Parnassus Investments LLC Buys 239,303 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 51.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 705,359 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 239,303 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $72,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. PFS Partners LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 267.8% in the 2nd quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 55.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 323 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new stake in Walmart in the second quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Harbor Asset Planning Inc. bought a new position in Walmart during the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $119.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday. CICC Research assumed coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, December 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Walmart from $110.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 target price (up previously from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Thirty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.37.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $114.53 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $912.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.05, a PEG ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $109.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $103.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.24 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.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its earnings results 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. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.31% and a net margin of 3.26%.The company had revenue of $179.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $175.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 26th. The stock was 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 owned 4,315,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $482,583,689.39. This trade represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,425 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.00, for a total transaction of $166,725.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 641,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,039,471. The trade was a 0.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 125,628 shares of company stock worth $13,690,065. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.