Captrust Financial Advisors Grows Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,147,470 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,792 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in Walmart were worth $118,258,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $5,367,770,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 worth $1,123,138,000 after purchasing an additional 11,368,549 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake 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 worth $1,199,907,000 after purchasing an additional 7,614,172 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 431,817,510 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,223,116,000 after purchasing an additional 5,856,468 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 20.5% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 23,497,921 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,413,236,000 after purchasing an additional 4,004,277 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares in the company, valued at $65,082,852. This represents a 6.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total value of $9,430,445.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 402,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,772,492.88. The trade was a 15.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 278,278 shares of company stock valued at $33,974,118 in the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective (up from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, January 15th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $134.00 price target (up from $129.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.76.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is being recognized as a practical AI leader in retail—deploying inventory self‑healing, route optimization and a generative shopping assistant that raises average order value and trims costs; these initiatives support margins and long‑term growth.
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s international segment showed strength in Q4 fiscal 2026 (roughly 7.5% sales growth and ~17% e‑commerce growth), providing another growth lever outside the US that can help offset domestic pressures. Walmart’s International Business Shows Strength
• Positive Sentiment: Leadership transition has been orderly; management is pushing AI and omnichannel execution that management expects will drive operating income and sales growth, which reassures long‑term investors.
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart goes ex‑dividend on March 20 with a boosted payout; the headline dividend supports income investors, though some pieces debate sustainability. Walmart Is About to Pay a Boosted Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: WMT is drawing heavy retail investor attention and appears on multiple “trending” and comparison writeups; this increases volume and sentiment volatility but is not a direct catalyst. Walmart Is a Trending Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon announced faster 1‑hour and 3‑hour delivery in US cities—heightening competition in same‑day/ultra‑fast delivery where Walmart has been investing. Faster Amazon service can pressure Walmart’s online share and margins in urban markets. Amazon launches 1-hour shipping in US cities
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts note Walmart trades at a premium valuation versus history/peers given its growth profile (e‑commerce, ads and omnichannel gains); concerns that the stock is “rich” make it vulnerable to any negative surprise or competitive threat. Walmart’s Valuation Looks Rich

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $125.08 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $996.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.65, a PEG ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $79.81 and a one year high of $134.69. The company’s fifty day moving average is $123.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.66 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. Analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a $0.2475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.13%.

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.