Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently commented on WMT. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. DA Davidson set a $150.00 target price on shares of Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $147.00 price target (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.76.

Walmart Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $125.79 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.00 trillion, a PE ratio of 45.91, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart has a 52-week low of $79.81 and a 52-week high of $134.69. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $124.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $114.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. 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, research analysts anticipate that Walmart will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 36.13%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total transaction of $4,158,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 533,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,082,852. This represents a 6.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.27, for a total value of $2,445,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 506,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,962,034.28. This trade represents a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 274,278 shares of company stock worth $33,825,793 in the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $49,015,626,000 after buying an additional 4,304,436 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 2,242,364 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 6,517,394 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $6,458,529,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,526,238,000 after acquiring an additional 328,229 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmex (Walmart de México y Centroamérica), Walmart’s largest international unit, announced a $2.5 billion investment for 2026 to expand stores and operations in Mexico — a near-term growth catalyst for international revenue and an earnings diversification driver. Walmart (WMT) Unit Walmex Plans $2.5B Investment in Mexico
• Positive Sentiment: Commentators are flagging Walmart as a defensive holding that performs well in stagflation or weak-consumer scenarios because it sells essential goods across income cycles, supporting demand for the stock in risk-off moves. Stagflation Fears Are Back
• Positive Sentiment: Other retail-focused analysis highlights Walmart among retailers structurally positioned to withstand tariffs and inflation pressures, reinforcing the defensive narrative for long-term investors. 3 Retail Stocks Built to Survive Tariffs, Inflation, and the Next 30 Years
• Positive Sentiment: TV commentator Jim Cramer expressed a bullish near-term take on Walmart’s price action, which can attract momentum-driven flows and retail buying. Jim Cramer on Walmart
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/sector research notes defensive sectors (consumer staples/retail staples) are outperforming as recession odds rise, which benefits Walmart but is a broader market theme rather than a company-specific trigger. As Recession Odds Climb, Defensive Sectors Continue to Outperform (WMT)
• Neutral Sentiment: Profiles noting the Walton family’s rising net worth and billionaire rankings are headline-grabbing but have limited direct impact on operations or near-term stock fundamentals. Tech Titans Dominate Billionaires List. Walmart Heirs Join the Elite.
• Negative Sentiment: Some outlets lay out reasons to sell WMT (valuation, margin pressure, or better opportunities elsewhere), which can weigh on sentiment among more cautious investors. 3 reasons to sell WMT and 1 stock to buy instead
• Negative Sentiment: Analysis suggesting Walmart’s “recession signal” is flashing red raises macro concerns: stronger demand for Walmart can indicate broader consumer stress and a deteriorating economic environment, which is a mixed/negative macro signal for markets. The Walmart (WMT) Recession Signal Is Flashing Red

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.