Aspire Growth Partners LLC Raises Stock Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Aspire Growth Partners LLC increased its stake in Walmart Inc. by 48.4% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 7,943 shares, bringing its total holdings to 24,359 shares.
• Walmart has announced a dividend of $0.235 per share to be paid on September 2nd, reflecting a yield of 90.0%.
• Wall Street analysts have shown optimism for Walmart's stock, with a consensus target price of $109.89 and a majority rating of "Buy" or higher from 31 analysts.

Aspire Growth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 48.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 24,359 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 7,943 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 1.9% of Aspire Growth Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Aspire Growth Partners LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $2,138,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 425,961,042 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $37,395,120,000 after acquiring an additional 3,224,154 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Walmart by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,943,049,000 after acquiring an additional 3,550,037 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 33,292,749 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,922,770,000 after buying an additional 7,706,201 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 29,843,892 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,696,396,000 after buying an additional 233,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Walmart by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 29,188,142 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,562,427,000 after buying an additional 823,020 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT traded down $1.1410 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $96.8190. The stock had a trading volume of 32,639,594 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,245,232. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a market cap of $772.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.01 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The business's 50 day moving average price is $97.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.63.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The retailer reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.06). Walmart had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The business had revenue of $169.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.600 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.620 EPS. Research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a dividend yield of 90.0%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.14, for a total value of $1,248,712.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 932,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at $88,700,258.82. This represents a 1.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.58, for a total transaction of $1,855,781.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,412,398 shares in the company, valued at $421,737,000.84. This trade represents a 0.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 88,841 shares of company stock worth $8,565,205 in the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Erste Group Bank upgraded Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. KeyCorp increased their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Mizuho reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $110.07.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.