Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Lowers Stake in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA trimmed its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 108,697 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 5,738 shares during the quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA’s holdings in Walmart were worth $12,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,868,000 after buying an additional 21,939 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $800,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 50,307 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,416,000 after acquiring an additional 1,715 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 13,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,272,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its position in Walmart by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 91,341 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,931,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $119.02 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $948.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.44, a PEG ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $79.81 and a one year high of $134.69. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $124.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $112.74. 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 (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $0.2475 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.13%.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Growing AI narrative and modest analyst upside: coverage notes that Walmart’s AI investments (supply-chain, store ops) are reshaping its growth story and one valuation model nudged fair value slightly higher to ~$136, supporting longer-term upside. This bolsters bullish investor interest in WMT as a tech-enabled retailer. How Walmart (WMT) Is Rewriting Its Story With AI Hype And Valuation Questions
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/technical support for defensive retail: coverage from Barron’s highlights Walmart alongside other defensive retail names on both technical and fundamental grounds, which can attract risk-off flows and relative-strength buyers in uncertain markets. Walmart, Ross Stores, and Other ‘Defensive’ Retail Stocks
• Positive Sentiment: Market narrative that Walmart is an AI play: features arguing Walmart (and Target) are meaningful AI plays could lift investor conviction around margin improvement and efficiency gains over time. Forget Chipmakers: Walmart and Target Are the Real AI Plays
• Neutral Sentiment: Higher-than-usual call buying: intraday activity showed a ~42% increase in call option volume, which signals bullish positioning but could be speculative or short-term. Watch whether this leads to sustained buying or just short-term gamma flow.
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO transition focus: commentary on managing and positioning around CEO transitions notes both risk and opportunity — transitions can create volatility but also potential strategic shifts. Investors should watch messaging and execution from leadership. How to Play 3 Major CEO Transitions in Early 2026 (WMT)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by CEO: CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares (~1.87% reduction in his position) in a disclosed SEC filing — insider sales can be interpreted negatively by some investors even if part of routine diversification. Insider Sale SEC Filing

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $1,214,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 108,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,153,389.24. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. The trade was a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 274,278 shares of company stock worth $33,605,809. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 price objective on Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 price target on Walmart in a research report on Friday, March 6th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up from $128.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $135.76.

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.