Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Sells 38,825 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 16.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 204,133 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 38,825 shares during the quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $22,743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 28.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,868,000 after buying an additional 21,939 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $800,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the period. Peterson Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Walmart by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 50,307 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,416,000 after buying an additional 1,715 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 13,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,272,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 91,341 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,931,000 after buying an additional 1,048 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s restructuring appears aimed at streamlining operations and improving coordination across tech and AI teams, which could boost efficiency and profitability if executed well.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary ahead of earnings remains constructive, with reports highlighting Walmart’s strong earnings-surprise track record and arguing that its premium valuation is justified by growth and execution.
• Positive Sentiment: Pre-earnings research from major analysts has reiterated favorable views on Walmart, suggesting expectations remain high heading into the company’s quarterly report.
• Neutral Sentiment: The job cuts were reported to be part of an internal reorganization rather than a direct response to AI replacing workers, which limits the read-through to near-term fundamentals. Walmart lays off or relocates about 1,000 corporate workers, WSJ reports
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles also framed the move as a broader digital-transformation effort, but the actual earnings impact is still unclear until Walmart reports results and guidance.
• Negative Sentiment: Layoffs can sometimes signal management caution or cost pressure, and investor reaction may be tempered by the fact that Walmart’s shares already trade at a premium valuation ahead of earnings.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 687,287 shares in the company, valued at $83,821,522.52. This represents a 1.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 167,195 shares of company stock worth $20,975,804. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT opened at $131.47 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.05 trillion, a P/E ratio of 47.98, a P/E/G ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 0.65. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $126.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $118.87. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.89 and a 52-week high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 EPS. 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, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 18th. Argus raised shares of Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.67.

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.