Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Stock Price Up 3.3% – Here’s Why

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) shot up 3.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $131.70 and last traded at $131.18. 25,729,340 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average session volume of 42,005,730 shares. The stock had previously closed at $126.94.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart joined the trillion?dollar market?cap club, boosting investor confidence that its investments in e?commerce, tech and higher?margin services are being rewarded. Walmart Trillion-Dollar Club (Fool)
• Positive Sentiment: Evidence of accelerating Walmart+ paid?membership adoption supports a path to more recurring, higher?margin revenue — a key part of the bull thesis. Walmart paid membership growth (Seeking Alpha)
• Positive Sentiment: Large institutional buying (e.g., Alecta boosting its stake) is a vote of confidence from some money managers and can support the stock at higher levels. Alecta boosts stake in Walmart (TipRanks)
• Positive Sentiment: Retail commentator Tim Bohen flagged Walmart among his “Big 3” long?term AI/retail ideas, reinforcing positive retail investor narratives. The Big 3: BE, WMT, XPO (YouTube)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage is tilted positive but consensus targets are near current prices; recent quarterly results beat estimates and FY?26 EPS guidance is modest — upside now depends on continued execution. Zacks: Earnings ESP for retailers
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling (EVP Donna Morris and others disclosed multi?million dollar stock sales this week) can create short?term selling pressure or be read as executives monetizing gains. Walmart insider selling (InsiderTrades)
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive risk from Amazon’s physical grocery/fulfillment push and Walmart’s elevated multiples mean any slowdown in sales or margin mix could trigger a pullback. Amazon grocery competition (Reuters)

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, January 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $121.00 price objective on Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday. Thirty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.06.

Walmart Stock Up 3.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market cap of $1.05 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.65. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $116.03 and its 200 day moving average is $106.83.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $179.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $175.15 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.26% and a return on equity of 21.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.58 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.75, for a total value of $1,374,843.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 879,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $92,160,621.25. The trade was a 1.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.65, for a total transaction of $746,550.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,535,221.85. This trade represents a 4.89% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 229,196 shares of company stock worth $26,957,858. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Collier Financial acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

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.