Capital International Investors Makes New $592.85 Million Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Capital International Investors opened a new Walmart position in Q4, buying 5.32 million shares worth about $592.85 million. The stake represented roughly 0.07% of Walmart at the end of the reporting period.
• Walmart continues to attract broad institutional interest, with hedge funds and other investors holding about 26.76% of the stock. Several other funds also added or initiated positions during the quarter.
• Recent business updates were positive: Walmart saw unusually heavy call-option buying, expanded Express Delivery to include Subway meals, and posted quarterly revenue of $177.75 billion, topping estimates while matching earnings expectations.

Capital International Investors acquired a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,321,318 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $592,848,000. Capital International Investors owned approximately 0.07% of Walmart at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $1,123,000. Tradition Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 24,762 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,759,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Delphi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $6,324,000. Havemeyer Place LP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $2,152,000. Finally, 111 Capital increased its position in shares of Walmart by 59.2% during the fourth quarter. 111 Capital now owns 20,487 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,282,000 after acquiring an additional 7,615 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 target price on Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 target price on Walmart in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $137.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 11th. One investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $138.85.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart saw unusually heavy call-option buying, with traders purchasing 174,648 calls, about 43% above average volume. That suggests some investors are betting on a rebound or near-term upside.
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart expanded its delivery business by adding Subway meals to its Express Delivery offering, allowing customers to order freshly made food through the Walmart app or website and receive it in as little as 30 minutes. The move could help Walmart boost order frequency, strengthen its convenience proposition, and take a larger share of meal budgets. Walmart Adds Express Delivery From In-Store Restaurants, Starting With Subway®
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholders backed Walmart’s 2026 annual meeting results, and management highlighted strong FY26 performance and its omnichannel model, reinforcing confidence in the company’s growth strategy. Walmart Announces 2026 Annual Shareholders' Meeting Voting Results

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total transaction of $359,368.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 577,853 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $71,607,543.76. This represents a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total value of $1,308,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,300,550.91. This trade represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 117,008 shares of company stock valued at $14,492,704. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $118.88 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market cap of $946.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.71, a P/E/G ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.60. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $93.43 and a fifty-two week high of $135.15. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $125.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.20.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.66. The firm had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.Walmart's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $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, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WMT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.