Kanawha Capital Management LLC Acquires 6,476 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Kanawha Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 70,244 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,476 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $7,826,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 435,652,710 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $44,898,368,000 after acquiring an additional 3,835,200 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Walmart by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $19,046,104,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,364 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 1.6% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,298,623 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,153,176,000 after acquiring an additional 634,211 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Walmart by 3.5% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 27,268,463 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,810,288,000 after acquiring an additional 934,468 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.4% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 24,990,692 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,575,541,000 after acquiring an additional 93,459 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Trading Up 1.6%

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $132.03 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.89 and a 12 month high of $134.69. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $116.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market capitalization of $1.05 trillion, a P/E ratio of 48.19, a PEG ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.66.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.2475 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s payout ratio is presently 36.13%.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart filed its 2026 Annual Report and proxy; CEO John Furner’s first shareholder letter emphasizes confidence in the business model and investments in associates and AI-powered solutions — signals management is prioritizing productivity and tech-driven growth. Walmart Releases 2026 Annual Report and Proxy Statement
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $140 and kept an “overweight” rating, offering fresh analyst validation and upside versus current levels — a direct catalyst for buy-side flows. Morgan Stanley raises price target
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart launched “Upstream Facility Services,” expanding into maintenance services for businesses — a diversification move that creates higher-margin, recurring B2B revenue beyond core retail. Walmart Inc. (WMT) Diversifies Beyond Retail Into Maintenance Services
• Positive Sentiment: Sam’s Club introduced a one-hour express delivery option for members, tightening competition with Costco and improving value for members — an operational win that can drive higher same-club sales and membership retention. Walmart’s warehouse club ups the pressure on Costco
• Positive Sentiment: Consensus analyst rating sits at “Buy,” reflecting broad sell‑side confidence which supports demand for the shares. Walmart Given Consensus Rating of “Buy”
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces highlight Walmart’s strategic push into the “decision layer” (competing with Amazon on AI-driven choice architecture) — underscores longer-term tech competition but is not an immediate earnings swing. Amazon and Walmart Race to Capture Retail’s Decision Layer First
• Neutral Sentiment: Partnerships like the Back to the Roots retail program are PR/CSR positives that help merchandising and sustainability narratives but have limited near-term revenue impact. Back to the Roots Scales Regenerative Movement Nationwide
• Negative Sentiment: Industry commentary noting Visa’s faster market‑cap growth versus Walmart highlights relative-growth concerns and investor preference for payments/tech growth stories over traditional retail — a competitive narrative that can cap valuation multiples. One Year Later: We Predicted Visa Would Overtake Walmart

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.72, for a total transaction of $361,688.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 596,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,334,117.76. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 486,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This trade represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 243,960 shares of company stock valued at $30,284,661. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $127.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $125.00 target price (up from $108.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 target price (up from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $137.79.

Walmart 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.