Vest Financial LLC Has $63.71 Million Stake in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Vest Financial trimmed its Walmart stake by 9% to 571,871 shares (worth $63.71M), making WMT its 22nd largest holding and about 0.8% of the fund's portfolio.
• Insider selling has been notable: EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares (~$9.43M) and EVP Christopher J. Nicholas sold 34,082 shares (~$4.16M), with insiders selling 263,376 shares (~$32.85M) in the last 90 days (insiders own 0.10%).
• Fundamentals and sentiment: Walmart slightly beat quarterly estimates (EPS $0.74 vs. $0.73; revenue $190.66B vs. $188.37B), issued FY2027 guidance of $2.75–2.85 EPS, and holds a consensus "Buy" from analysts with an average target of ~$137.79 and a market cap of about $1.02T.

Vest Financial LLC decreased its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 9.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 571,871 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 56,718 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for about 0.8% of Vest Financial LLC's holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Vest Financial LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $63,712,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 28.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,868,000 after purchasing an additional 21,939 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $800,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. Peterson Wealth Management boosted its stake in Walmart by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 50,307 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,715 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 13,008 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,272,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its stake in Walmart by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 91,341 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,931,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total transaction of $9,430,445.99. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 402,072 shares in the company, valued at $49,772,492.88. This trade represents a 15.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total value of $4,158,004.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,082,852. This trade represents a 6.01% 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 valued at $32,851,650 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A large institutional buyer increased its Walmart stake by 406,400 shares, signaling confidence from a professional investor and adding buying pressure to the stock. Alecta Pensionsforsakring Boosts Walmart Stake by 406,400 Shares
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary ties rising consumer confidence to better demand for large retailers, listing Walmart among recommended buys — a potential tailwind for sentiment and multiple expansion. Buy Walmart and 3 More Retail Stocks as Consumer Confidence Surges
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart opened a $350M, company‑owned milk processing plant in Robinson, Texas, adding >400 jobs and strengthening its vertically integrated supply chain — a move that can improve margins and product reliability over time. Walmart Opens Third Owned and Operated Milk Processing Facility in Robinson, Texas, Creating More Than 400 New Jobs
• Positive Sentiment: Management is restructuring store leadership (eliminating store lead role, expanding higher‑paid manager/coach roles) and doubling down on fashion/private labels — positioned as a productivity and margin‑enhancing pivot that appears to be supporting the recent share rally. Walmart Reshapes Store Leadership And Fashion Push As Shares Rally
• Neutral Sentiment: Media coverage details elimination of the store lead role and new high‑pay managerial tracks; useful for monitoring execution risk and labor costs but not an immediate revenue driver on its own. Walmart eliminates store lead positions as managers making $400K stay for longer
• Neutral Sentiment: A supplier, Axil Brands, expanded product listings at Walmart — positive for assortment breadth but primarily a modest revenue/traffic benefit at the supplier level rather than a material Walmart catalyst. Axil Brands Climbs After Deepening Walmart Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: NBPure launched an exclusive health product at Walmart — expands private‑label/partner assortment and convenience for shoppers, but likely a small, incremental sales contributor. NBPure Launches Exclusive MagO7 60-Count at Walmart, Expanding Access to Its Best-Selling Gut Cleanse

Walmart Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $128.01 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $134.69. The business has a 50-day moving average of $125.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $117.46. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced 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 company had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $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 analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and set a $138.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. HSBC downgraded Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $122.00 to $131.00 in a research report on Friday, February 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Walmart from $127.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Craig Hallum set a $150.00 target price on Walmart in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $137.79.

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.

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