IRON Financial LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

IRON Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 154.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,515 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 6,381 shares during the quarter. IRON Financial LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,307,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WMT. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.9% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 2,416,580 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $300,333,000 after purchasing an additional 68,632 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA boosted its position in Walmart by 253.3% in the 1st quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA now owns 384,034 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $47,728,000 after purchasing an additional 275,337 shares in the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. boosted its position in Walmart by 42.1% in the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 275,341 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,676,000 after purchasing an additional 81,635 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.9% during the 3rd 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 period. Finally, Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,855,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is being viewed as a defensive winner in a cautious consumer environment, with commentary pointing to resilient grocery spending, strong omnichannel execution, and growth in advertising and membership revenue as reasons the stock could grind higher. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive on Walmart, and new commentary highlighted strong interest in the company’s Google AI partnership for “agentic shopping,” which could support future digital commerce growth and ecosystem monetization. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity showed bullish positioning, with traders buying far more WMT call options than usual, suggesting some investors are betting on a rebound. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street continues to rate Walmart favorably overall, with several firms reiterating buy-equivalent ratings and an average price target above current levels, though not enough to fully offset recent valuation concerns.
• Negative Sentiment: Investor concern remains over slowing U.S. comparable sales and the company’s reliance on price cuts and tariff refunds to manage inventory, which could pressure margins if the trend continues. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 3,775 shares in a pre-arranged 10b5-1 transaction, a routine filing but still a small negative sentiment item for traders. Article Title

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $111.84 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $122.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $890.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.23 and a 52 week high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. The firm had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.61 earnings per share. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 3,775 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.64, for a total transaction of $413,891.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 630,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,074,186.76. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.84, for a total transaction of $1,638,525.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 674,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $84,162,384.08. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 104,505 shares of company stock worth $12,858,514. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on WMT. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price objective on shares of Walmart from $147.00 to $146.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $140.00 target price on Walmart in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.85.

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.