Advantage Trust Co Lowers Stock Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Advantage Trust Co slashed its Walmart stake by 93.0% in Q4, selling 30,200 shares and retaining 2,268 shares worth about $253,000 according to its latest 13F filing.
• Company insiders were net sellers, disposing of 263,376 shares valued at roughly $32.85 million over the last quarter, including EVP John D. Rainey (20,000 shares) and CEO John R. Furner (13,125 shares).
• Walmart slightly beat Q4 expectations (EPS $0.74 vs. $0.73; revenue $190.66B vs. $188.37B), provided FY27 EPS guidance of 2.75–2.85, and holds an average analyst rating of Buy with a mean price target of $137.79.

Advantage Trust Co reduced its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 93.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,268 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 30,200 shares during the quarter. Advantage Trust Co's holdings in Walmart were worth $253,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.27, for a total value of $2,445,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 506,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at $61,962,034.28. The trade was a 3.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.96, for a total value of $1,600,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 687,287 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $83,821,522.52. This represents a 1.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 263,376 shares of company stock worth $32,851,650 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is overhauling store leadership roles by eliminating the store lead title and converting those employees into manager/coach roles with a pathway to much higher pay (reports highlight potential salaries up to $400K). Management says this is aimed at boosting store execution and retention — a potential long‑term benefit to sales and customer experience, though it could raise payroll costs in some markets. Walmart is changing its roadmap to $400K store managerial role
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart Connect expanded its CTV/streaming ad capabilities with a curated marketplace (Connect Select) and more partner integrations, making it easier for mid‑sized advertisers to buy streaming inventory — this supports faster growth in higher‑margin advertising revenue. Walmart Simplifies Streaming Ads for Mid-Sized Business
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts note Walmart’s earnings mix is diversifying: Q4 profits benefited from ads, memberships and e‑commerce gains, which can strengthen resilience vs. pure retail sales — a positive structural shift for margins and recurring revenue. Walmart Builds Diversified Profit Streams: Is Resilience Strengthening?
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart added the NBPure MagO7 60‑count product to store shelves, expanding health & wellness assortment and incremental category sales — a small but positive merchandising win. NBPure Launches Exclusive MagO7 60-Count at Walmart
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart appears on retail and social lists as a top dividend/quality stock (Reddit/financial blogs)—positive PR but not a material operational driver. Is Walmart (WMT) One of the Best Quality Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Reddit?
• Negative Sentiment: Shares have pulled back recently (reported decline on the latest close), suggesting investors are weighing the company’s valuation (elevated P/E and PEG relative to historical averages) and near‑term margin risk from any higher labor costs or softer traffic. Walmart (WMT) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $150.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $127.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $137.79.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT opened at $127.59 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $125.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $117.39. 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 firm has a market cap of $1.02 trillion, a PE ratio of 46.57, a P/E/G ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion during 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%.Walmart's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm 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. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

About Walmart

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.

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