Vinva Investment Management Ltd Buys 50,364 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Vinva Investment Management raised its Walmart stake 17.7% in Q3, buying 50,364 shares to hold 334,902 shares worth $34.52M, making WMT 0.7% of its portfolio and its 21st-largest position.
• Insider selling accelerated recently: CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares at $129.10 and Director C. Douglas McMillon sold 19,416 at $126.71, with insiders offloading 279,703 shares (~$34.14M) over the past three months (insiders now own ~0.10%).
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive, with several firms raising targets and reaffirming buy/outperform ratings; the MarketBeat consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $135.76.

Vinva Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 334,902 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 50,364 shares during the period. Walmart makes up 0.7% of Vinva Investment Management Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Vinva Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Walmart were worth $34,522,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Collier Financial bought a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new position in Walmart in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc grew its stake in Walmart by 212.6% in the third quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 322 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.10, for a total value of $1,694,437.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 591,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,308,944.40. This represents a 2.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total value of $2,460,201.36. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,023,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $509,780,812.39. This trade represents a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 279,703 shares of company stock worth $34,140,843 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: OpenAI reportedly pulling back on direct purchases in ChatGPT could send more checkout traffic to retailer apps, giving Walmart’s commerce and app ecosystem an advantage. ChatGPT's Retail Retreat Hands Walmart An AI Advantage: Analyst
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary and re‑rated fair‑value models are lifting the tech/AI narrative around Walmart, producing higher price targets and supporting upside expectations from investors focused on digital and ads monetization. How Walmart (WMT) Is Rewriting Its Story With Tech, AI And A Richer Valuation Debate
• Positive Sentiment: Company execution reminders — new store formats and ongoing omnichannel growth — reinforce the core retail case that underpins earnings stability. Walmart Opens Next Generation Supercenter in The Villages
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention is high — search and readership spikes (Zacks/Yahoo) and conference transcripts give analysts more to parse but contain no single market‑moving surprise. Investors Heavily Search Walmart Inc. (WMT): Here is What You Need to Know
• Negative Sentiment: A reported sale by a 10% Walmart owner totaling roughly $136.45M adds supply pressure and can prompt short‑term negative sentiment despite not reflecting company fundamentals. 10% Owner Of Walmart Sold $136.45M In Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Analyses highlight a cautious forward outlook and attention to a ~$100M regulatory settlement tied to the Spark Driver program — both factors that pressured the stock in recent sessions. Walmart slides as cautious outlook and regulatory settlement weigh on sentiment
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing tariff and import risks remain a margin headwind risk given Walmart’s large import footprint; rising trade frictions could pressure costs if not passed to customers. Walmart: Navigating A Bumpy Tariff Environment

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WMT. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $140.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $147.00 price target (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $135.76.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $123.80 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $986.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.66. The company's 50-day moving average is $121.87 and its 200 day moving average is $111.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.79. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.81 and a fifty-two week high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current 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 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 dividend yield of 0.8%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.31%.

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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