Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. Grows Stock Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. lifted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 379,690 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 19,650 shares during the period. Walmart makes up approximately 1.8% of Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $42,382,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $1,709,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 16.6% in the third quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 63,782 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,567,000 after purchasing an additional 9,061 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.9% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,010,886 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $104,182,000 after purchasing an additional 28,026 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 466.6% in the third quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 13,343 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,375,000 after purchasing an additional 10,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tradewinds LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $11,077,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.96, for a total transaction of $1,600,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 687,287 shares in the company, valued at approximately $83,821,522.52. This trade represents a 1.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 transaction of $2,445,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 506,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,962,034.28. The trade was a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 263,376 shares of company stock valued at $32,851,650. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on WMT. DA Davidson set a $150.00 target price on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Mizuho raised their target price on Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 target price on Walmart in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $138.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.79.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is overhauling store leadership roles by eliminating the store lead title and converting those employees into manager/coach roles with a pathway to much higher pay (reports highlight potential salaries up to $400K). Management says this is aimed at boosting store execution and retention — a potential long‑term benefit to sales and customer experience, though it could raise payroll costs in some markets. Walmart is changing its roadmap to $400K store managerial role
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart Connect expanded its CTV/streaming ad capabilities with a curated marketplace (Connect Select) and more partner integrations, making it easier for mid‑sized advertisers to buy streaming inventory — this supports faster growth in higher‑margin advertising revenue. Walmart Simplifies Streaming Ads for Mid-Sized Business
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts note Walmart’s earnings mix is diversifying: Q4 profits benefited from ads, memberships and e‑commerce gains, which can strengthen resilience vs. pure retail sales — a positive structural shift for margins and recurring revenue. Walmart Builds Diversified Profit Streams: Is Resilience Strengthening?
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart added the NBPure MagO7 60‑count product to store shelves, expanding health & wellness assortment and incremental category sales — a small but positive merchandising win. NBPure Launches Exclusive MagO7 60-Count at Walmart
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart appears on retail and social lists as a top dividend/quality stock (Reddit/financial blogs)—positive PR but not a material operational driver. Is Walmart (WMT) One of the Best Quality Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Reddit?
• Negative Sentiment: Shares have pulled back recently (reported decline on the latest close), suggesting investors are weighing the company’s valuation (elevated P/E and PEG relative to historical averages) and near‑term margin risk from any higher labor costs or softer traffic. Walmart (WMT) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $127.59 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $125.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $117.39. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.89 and a 52-week high of $134.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.57, a PEG ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.66. 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 (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. The business’s 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. Equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.2475 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.13%.

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.