OneAscent Financial Services LLC Takes $2.65 Million Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

OneAscent Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 23,350 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,645,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $6,458,529,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 188.1% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,663,172 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,199,907,000 after acquiring an additional 7,614,172 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in Walmart by 54.0% in the 2nd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 18,607,297 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,107,462,000 after acquiring an additional 6,525,224 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 6,517,394 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $592,848,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 target price (down from $140.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Walmart from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 21st. Evercore set a $125.00 price target on Walmart in a research report on Friday. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.88.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s Sparky AI shopping assistant reportedly generates 40% higher customer spending among users, while the company is also integrating AI into advertising and exploring technology partnerships with OpenAI and ChatGPT. These efforts could lift conversion, basket sizes and future digital-advertising revenue. Walmart Sparky AI article
• Positive Sentiment: The launch of Scenario, a women’s fashion brand with most products priced below $25, is designed to attract younger, trend-conscious shoppers and strengthen Walmart’s position in apparel. Its value pricing may help the retailer compete more directly with Amazon. Walmart Scenario fashion brand article
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts’ consensus price target of approximately $128 remains well above recent trading levels, suggesting some Wall Street analysts view the selloff as excessive. Walmart also exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue expectations and raised its full-year sales-growth outlook to 4%-5%.
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart is rolling out NFC tap-to-pay across U.S. stores and clubs, improving checkout convenience and aligning with broader mobile-wallet adoption. The change may support engagement but is unlikely to materially alter near-term earnings. Walmart NFC rollout article
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. comparable sales increased only 2.6%, below the 3.8% consensus estimate and representing Walmart’s slowest comparable-sales growth in six years. Higher gasoline prices and broader economic pressure may be making consumers more cautious, despite the earnings beat. Walmart comparable-sales miss article
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon’s share of U.S. clothing spending doubled to 17% in 2025 from 8.5% in 2019, while Walmart’s share edged lower. The widening gap raises concerns about Walmart’s ability to gain share in an important retail category. Amazon and Walmart clothing-share article
• Negative Sentiment: Commentators argue WMT still trades at a premium valuation—roughly 36 times forward earnings—despite decelerating growth and cautious consumer trends. That leaves less room for disappointment and has amplified the post-earnings decline.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 3,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.10, for a total transaction of $419,601.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 626,299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,834,416.90. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total value of $1,435,203.96. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 125,067 shares in the company, valued at $14,985,527.94. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 57,064 shares of company stock worth $6,697,788. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $105.38 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $838.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.04, a P/E/G ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $112.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $120.93. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $95.42 and a 52-week high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.83% and a net margin of 3.00%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.