Fifth Third Bancorp Sells 36,591 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Fifth Third Bancorp trimmed its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 1.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,394,887 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 36,591 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for about 0.8% of Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Walmart were worth $246,817,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,175,703 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $121,168,000 after buying an additional 229,220 shares in the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 0.8% in the second 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 in the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. boosted 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 acquiring an additional 9,061 shares during the period. Aviva PLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 16.4% in the second quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 3,833,720 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $374,861,000 after acquiring an additional 539,504 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors grew its position in shares of Walmart by 5.2% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 293,866 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,286,000 after purchasing an additional 14,487 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer raised its price target to $140 and kept an Outperform stance, citing a solid Q4 outlook — this helped underpin investor optimism. Oppenheimer price target increased
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage-driven buying: reports noted WMT trading higher after analyst upgrades, which can attract short-term flows ahead of earnings. Walmart trading higher after upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Telsey Advisory reaffirmed an Outperform and set a $135 target, reinforcing the buy-side narrative that execution improvements (esp. e‑commerce/AI) justify support. Telsey reaffirmation
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst projections and previews (Zacks) suggest key metrics point to a likely beat on some lines, but they highlight modest growth — expectations are elevated going into Q4. Zacks analyst projections
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart will host its Q4 earnings call on Feb. 19 — this event is the immediate catalyst for volatility as investors weigh AI-driven margin commentary against guidance. Earnings call announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: PRIMECAP trimmed its stake slightly — notable as an institutional action but not large enough to indicate a major shift in ownership stance. PRIMECAP trims stake
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary (Reuters) frames Walmart amid broader AI-driven volatility — investors are watchful for any guidance or AI-related execution risks discussed on the call. Wall St week ahead
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha piece downgraded WMT, arguing the stock trades at a rich ~50x blended P/E despite execution gains from AI — valuation concerns could cap upside if growth disappoints. Seeking Alpha downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Estée Lauder filed suit alleging counterfeit products sold via Walmart’s marketplace — potential reputational, legal, and marketplace-control implications that investors will watch closely. Estée Lauder sues Walmart

Walmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ WMT opened at $133.89 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $118.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.39. The company has a market cap of $1.07 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.81, a P/E/G ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.80. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.81 and a fifty-two week high of $134.65.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $179.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $175.15 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.26% and a return on equity of 21.31%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 506,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,962,034.28. The trade was a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total transaction of $9,430,445.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 402,072 shares in the company, valued at $49,772,492.88. This represents a 15.93% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 227,566 shares of company stock worth $26,790,653 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on WMT. Tigress Financial upped their price target on Walmart from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $119.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, January 30th. Thirty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.74.

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.