Strs Ohio Trims Stake in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Strs Ohio reduced its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,298,413 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 39,706 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 0.5% of Strs Ohio’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Walmart were worth $144,656,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Clayton Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 193.0% in the fourth quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 293 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $131.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $125.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $117.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.05 trillion, a PE ratio of 48.03, a P/E/G ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 0.65. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The business’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart announced a third U.S. milk-processing facility, a $350 million investment to boost domestic dairy supply and vertical integration, which should cut supply-chain risk and support grocery margins. Walmart opens third U.S. milk processing facility with $350 million investment
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart earmarked millions for multiple Arizona store upgrades — investments that can boost traffic, comps and localized competitiveness. Walmart earmarks millions for multiple Arizona store upgrades
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional investor Alecta increased its Walmart stake by ~406,400 shares, a sign of confidence from a large pension investor. Alecta Pensionsforsakring Boosts Walmart Stake by 406,400 Shares
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is expanding local-product assortments (e.g., region-specific coffee/beans) to better serve price‑sensitive consumers and differentiate merchandising — a low-cost way to improve basket relevance. Walmart Eyes Local Products as National Consumer Mood Sours
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage and analyst pieces debate Walmart vs. Costco and reiterate bullish theses on WMT’s e‑commerce gains and higher‑income customer mix — these keep sentiment constructive but don’t change fundamentals immediately. Better Buy: Walmart or Costco Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Several bullish write-ups (Yahoo/InsiderMonkey summarizing a Substack thesis) highlight valuation and growth arguments; useful for sentiment but not new company action. Is Walmart Inc. (WMT) A Good Stock To Buy Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart’s Acres for America grants program awarded $5.4M in conservation grants — positive for ESG profile but limited direct financial impact. NFWF Announces $5.4 Million in Grants from Walmart’s Acres for America Program
• Neutral Sentiment: Internal leadership redesign (changes to store-lead roles and retention moves for high-paid managers) suggests workforce optimization; could reduce costs or create short-term disruption depending on execution. Walmart redesigns its leadership pipeline as managers making $400K stay for longer

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.72, for a total value of $361,688.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 596,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,334,117.76. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total value of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 263,376 shares of company stock valued at $32,851,650. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on WMT shares. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Walmart from $127.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $138.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $147.00 price objective (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.79.

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.