NorthRock Partners LLC Grows Stake in Walmart Inc. $WMT

NorthRock Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 36.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 80,550 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 21,556 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $8,301,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Walmart in the second quarter valued at approximately $5,367,770,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 9,648.7% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,486,374 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,123,138,000 after buying an additional 11,368,549 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 431,817,510 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,223,116,000 after buying an additional 5,856,468 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 19,493,644 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,902,775,000 after buying an additional 3,710,506 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter valued at $273,784,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reported continued digital strength: eCommerce grew ~24% in the fiscal fourth quarter, reinforcing its omnichannel momentum and supporting revenue beat and modest upside to guidance — a clear near-term growth driver. Walmart eCommerce Up 24: Can Digital Momentum Continue?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and portfolio shops remain constructive: Tigress Financial reiterated a Buy and raised its price target to $150, citing Walmart’s shift toward tech-driven omnichannel operations — a signal of upward analyst sentiment. Tigress Financial Sees Walmart Inc. (WMT) as Tech-Driven Retail Leader
• Positive Sentiment: Flipkart IPO progress (Walmart-backed) remains a potential longer-term upside — an equity event that could unlock value and generate cash/strategic optionality. Walmart-backed Flipkart preps for an IPO as early as this year
• Neutral Sentiment: Schaeffer’s options commentary flagged bullish setups and the possibility of further record highs for WMT — useful for options traders but not a broad fundamental catalyst. Walmart Stock Could Nab More Record Highs
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysis pieces (The Motley Fool) flag that Walmart’s digital push could pay off if fulfillment economics and ROIC improve; it’s strategic upside but execution-dependent. Will Walmart’s Digital Push Pay Off in 2026?
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart is referenced in pieces about stock splits and retail-focused ETFs — background thematic support but not an immediate catalyst. 3 ETFs That Could Benefit as Consumers Tighten Their Budgets (WMT)
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical risk: coverage notes the Iran war and possible Strait of Hormuz disruptions could push supply-chain costs and retail prices higher — a margin and inflation risk for Walmart. How the Iran war could start to impact U.S. retail prices
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and sentiment pressure: commentary (247WallStreet) highlights retail investor criticism of WMT’s ~46x multiple and recent bearish social sentiment, raising the risk of multiple compression if growth disappoints. Reddit’s Loudest Walmart Critics Have a Point About That 46x Multiple

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total value of $9,430,445.99. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 402,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,772,492.88. This trade represents a 15.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.83, for a total value of $2,171,291.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,315,333 shares in the company, valued at approximately $482,583,689.39. The trade was a 0.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 279,703 shares of company stock worth $34,140,843 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $126.52 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.01 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $123.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $79.81 and a 1-year high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The company had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. Walmart’s quarterly revenue 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. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a $0.2475 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 34.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $145.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $134.00 price objective (up from $129.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 price objective on Walmart in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 target price on Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.76.

About Walmart

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.