Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Acquired by Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC

Key Points

• Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its Walmart stake by 1.8% in Q4, adding 7,966 shares to hold 439,946 shares valued at roughly $49.0 million (about 0.6% of its portfolio, its 26th largest position).
• Other large institutions continued to build positions—Vanguard now owns about 439.96 million shares (~$49.02 billion) and State Street holds ~184.81 million shares—with institutional investors collectively owning 26.76% of Walmart.
• Insider selling accelerated last quarter, with executives including C. Douglas McMillon and John D. Rainey among those who sold; insiders disposed of 263,376 shares (~$32.85 million) over the period, leaving insiders owning 0.10% of the stock.

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC grew its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 439,946 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 7,966 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 0.6% of Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $49,014,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer's stock worth $49,015,626,000 after acquiring an additional 4,304,436 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer's stock worth $19,046,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,364 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,298,623 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,153,176,000 after purchasing an additional 634,211 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 27,268,463 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,810,288,000 after purchasing an additional 934,468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 24,990,692 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,575,541,000 after purchasing an additional 93,459 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts note Walmart’s earnings mix is shifting toward higher‑margin streams—advertising, memberships and e‑commerce—which helped Q4 profits outpace sales and could support margin resiliency going forward. Walmart Builds Diversified Profit Streams
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart Connect expanded CTV advertising tools (Connect Select marketplace + more partner integrations), a product push that can accelerate ad revenue growth by making streaming buys easier for mid‑sized advertisers. This reinforces the company’s strategy to diversify revenue beyond retail sales. Walmart Simplifies Streaming Ads for Mid-Sized Business
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart launched an exclusive U.S. partnership to roll out ARIH, a BTS‑linked food & beverage brand, across stores and online—a targeted merchandising play to attract younger, culturally engaged shoppers and drive store and e‑commerce traffic. Walmart Bets On BTS ARIH Brand To Refresh Omni Channel Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Retail investor commentary places WMT among “best quality” dividend stocks on Reddit compilations—highlighting Walmart’s scale, dividend yield and steady cash flow as supportive of long‑term investor interest. (Coverage appeared across retail finance sites.) Is Walmart (WMT) One of the Best Quality Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Reddit?
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the operational positives, WMT shares sold off today while the broader market advanced; media coverage highlighted the drop, which may reflect short‑term profit‑taking, valuation concerns (WMT’s premium P/E) or rotation away from defensive/retail names. Walmart (WMT) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.21, for a total value of $2,566,989.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,193,995 shares of the company's stock, valued at $554,488,078.95. The trade was a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 486,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This trade represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 263,376 shares of company stock valued at $32,851,650 over the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $127.59 on Tuesday. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $91.89 and a 1-year high of $134.69. The stock has a market cap of $1.02 trillion, a PE ratio of 46.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.84 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. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $125.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $117.21.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $188.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. Walmart's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $140.00 price objective (up from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up from $128.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $137.79.

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.

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