Erste Group Bank Forecasts Walmart FY2028 Earnings

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) – Investment analysts at Erste Group Bank issued their FY2028 EPS estimates for shares of Walmart in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank analyst S. Lingnau anticipates that the retailer will post earnings per share of $2.96 for the year. The consensus estimate for Walmart’s current full-year earnings is $2.55 per share.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $130.00 target price (up previously from $123.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. DA Davidson set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price target on Walmart in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $132.53.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT opened at $122.99 on Monday. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $119.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $109.37. The firm has a market cap of $980.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.89, a PEG ratio of 4.97 and a beta of 0.65. Walmart has a 1 year low of $79.81 and a 1 year high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The company’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business 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.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued 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 is 34.31%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Donna Morris sold 76,181 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total value of $9,430,445.99. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 402,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,772,492.88. This represents a 15.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total value of $1,574,868.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 727,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,251,328.45. This represents a 1.77% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 211,696 shares of company stock worth $25,176,467. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walmart

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 28.8% during 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 last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Walmart by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 50,307 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,715 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.9% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew 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 valued at $8,931,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management highlights AI/automation and faster e‑commerce growth, which should support margin and productivity improvements over time. The future of retail is AI
• Positive Sentiment: Several brokers raised price targets or reaffirmed buy/outperform calls (Telsey, BTIG, Truist), which provides near‑term support and buyer interest. Telsey raises target
• Positive Sentiment: Board boosted shareholder returns — annual dividend raised to $0.99 and the company has been authorizing buybacks, which underpins cash‑return support. Dividend increase press release
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional activity shows accumulation in recent quarters and some technical analysts view the current pullback as a buying opportunity around $120–$110. That can stabilize downside but may not trigger an immediate rally. MarketBeat buy thesis
• Neutral Sentiment: An EVP sold a small block (1,255 shares) disclosed on a Form 4 — immaterial relative to his total holdings and likely routine liquidity. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance disappointed — FY‑2027 EPS and Q1 guidance came in below consensus and management used cautious language; this guidance miss is the primary driver of today’s selloff. Q4 press release / slides
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns and bearish commentary argue that expected operating‑income gains don’t fully justify high multiples, prompting some investors to trim positions. Seeking Alpha valuation critique
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive narrative: Amazon now surpasses Walmart in annual revenue — symbolic but it focuses investor attention on competitive pressure and growth strategy execution. Amazon surpasses Walmart
• Negative Sentiment: Limited analyst downgrades (HSBC cut to Hold) add to selling pressure from cautious funds. WMT Downgrade video

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.