Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on WMT. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price target (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $129.00 target price (up previously from $122.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, January 5th. Mizuho set a $125.00 price target on shares of Walmart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $119.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Thirty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.37.

Walmart Price Performance

Walmart stock opened at $114.53 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $912.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.05, a P/E/G ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $109.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $103.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.80. Walmart has a 1 year low of $79.81 and a 1 year high of $117.45.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $179.50 billion for 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%. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.58 earnings per share. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.91, for a total value of $1,508,193.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 733,841 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,325,669.31. This represents a 1.76% 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, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,425 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.00, for a total value of $166,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 641,363 shares in the company, valued at $75,039,471. This represents a 0.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 125,628 shares of company stock worth $13,690,065. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WMT. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,175,703 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $121,168,000 after acquiring an additional 229,220 shares during the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.8% during the second quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 5,091,126 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $497,771,000 after purchasing an additional 42,645 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 16.4% in the second quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 3,833,720 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $374,861,000 after purchasing an additional 539,504 shares in the last quarter. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 7.0% in the second quarter. Weatherly Asset Management L. P. now owns 56,140 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,489,000 after purchasing an additional 3,696 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Willis Johnson & Associates Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 76.6% in the 2nd quarter. Willis Johnson & Associates Inc. now owns 42,626 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,168,000 after purchasing an additional 18,485 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about 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.

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.