Capital World Investors Invests $174.33 Million in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,691,493 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $174,325,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at about $1,709,000. CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 24.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,175,703 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $121,168,000 after acquiring an additional 229,220 shares during the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 5,091,126 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $497,771,000 after acquiring an additional 42,645 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 63,782 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,567,000 after acquiring an additional 9,061 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors grew its position in Walmart by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 293,866 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,286,000 after acquiring an additional 14,487 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on WMT. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $128.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, November 21st. CICC Research started coverage on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, December 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.76.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $123.49 on Thursday. 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 Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.81 and a fifty-two week high of $134.69. The firm has a market cap of $984.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.07, a P/E/G ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $122.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $111.53.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The company had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. 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 2.55 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a $0.2475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is 36.13%.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart-backed Flipkart is reportedly preparing for an IPO as soon as this year — an eventual listing could unlock value for Walmart’s investment, attract new investor interest, and be a longer-term positive for WMT’s equity story. Walmart-backed Flipkart preps for an IPO as early as this year
• Positive Sentiment: BofA interprets OpenAI’s pullback on direct shopping inside ChatGPT as a net positive for Walmart, as it reduces a near-term competitive threat to Walmart’s e‑commerce and advertising growth plans. That view supports WMT’s digital/omnichannel outlook. BofA Calls Open AI News a Positive for Walmart Inc. (WMT)
• Positive Sentiment: An idea piece highlights ETFs that could benefit as consumers tighten budgets, signaling potential sector tailwinds for discount and warehouse retailers like Walmart if shoppers remain value‑focused. 3 ETFs That Could Benefit as Consumers Tighten Their Budgets (WMT)
• Positive Sentiment: 7 Brew is rolling out Ready‑to‑Drink coffees in Walmart stores across Arkansas — a small merchandising win that can incrementally boost in‑store sales and assortment breadth. 7 Brew Launches Ready‑to‑Drink Coffees in Walmart Stores Across Arkansas
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/momentum coverage notes recent share-price moves (strong 1‑year TSR and mixed short‑term performance). This piece provides context for why some investors may be trimming positions after a run. A Look At Walmart (WMT) Valuation After Recent Share Price Momentum
• Neutral Sentiment: Worldly hired a former Walmart human‑rights senior director to lead social‑risk strategy — notable for reputation and supply‑chain governance but unlikely to move the stock materially. Worldly Hires Former Walmart Human Rights Senior Director to Lead Social Risk Strategy
• Negative Sentiment: An analyst/compare piece argues Costco may be the better buy given its membership economics and comp performance — such comparisons can weigh on Walmart’s relative valuation and encourage rotation into perceived higher‑quality retail names. Walmart vs. Costco: Which Stock Is the Better Buy?

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 10,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $1,214,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 108,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,153,389.24. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total transaction of $4,158,004.00. Following the transaction, 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 279,703 shares of company stock worth $34,140,843. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.