Carderock Capital Management Inc. Takes Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Carderock Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 14,739 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,642,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at $5,367,770,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 9,648.7% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,486,374 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,123,138,000 after purchasing an additional 11,368,549 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 188.1% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,663,172 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,199,907,000 after purchasing an additional 7,614,172 shares during the period. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 20.5% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 23,497,921 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,413,236,000 after purchasing an additional 4,004,277 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.9% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 435,652,710 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $44,898,368,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835,200 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $122.05 on Wednesday. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $79.81 and a one year high of $134.69. The company has a 50-day moving average of $124.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.24. The stock has a market cap of $973.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.54, a PEG ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.66. 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 (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. 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, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total transaction of $2,460,201.36. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,023,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $509,780,812.39. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total value of $1,214,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 108,294 shares in the company, valued at $13,153,389.24. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 274,278 shares of company stock worth $33,605,809. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s ad business surged ~37% in Q4, which boosts higher-margin revenue and could improve overall profitability going forward. Walmart’s Ad Business Jumps 37%: Margin Upside Ahead?
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results beat consensus (EPS and revenue) and management set FY2027 EPS guidance (2.75–2.85), supporting the view that Walmart’s core retail performance and membership/ads mix are improving.
• Positive Sentiment: New national product distribution deals (example: Zep cleaning products now carried nationwide at Walmart) show ongoing assortment and supplier momentum that can drive traffic and category share. Zep Expands Home Pro Distribution at Walmart
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical/market commentary is highlighting Walmart as a buy point amid broader market weakness — useful for momentum traders but less material to fundamentals. Dow Jones discount retailer Walmart offers latest buy point amid market weakness
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry logistics moves — FedEx launching same‑day options as retailers (including Walmart) race to speed up delivery — are an operational/competitive factor to watch but not an immediate earnings shock. FedEx launches same-day delivery with OneRail
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reports in the feed show zero or data anomalies (0 shares / NaN increases) and a days-to-cover of 0.0 — not currently informative for sentiment.
• Negative Sentiment: A plaintiffs’ law firm is investigating Walmart’s board for possible breach of fiduciary duty related to alleged deceptive pay practices for Spark drivers — a governance/legal risk that could lead to litigation or reputational costs. Berger Montague PC Investigates Walmart Board for Breach of Fiduciary Duty
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: the CEO reported selling roughly $1.6M of WMT stock — a signal some investors watch closely even though sales can be routine. Walmart CEO Sells $1,600,725.00 in Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst commentary questioning Walmart’s “all-weather” defensive status suggests valuation and crowding risks for investors who expect steady downside protection; this is a cautionary view on medium-term upside. Walmart: All-Weather Status Ironically Creates Risk For Investors

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on WMT. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 9th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $147.00 price target (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. HSBC cut shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $122.00 to $131.00 in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.76.

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.