Argent Trust Co Reduces Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Argent Trust Co trimmed its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 1.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 461,627 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 8,849 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 1.7% of Argent Trust Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Walmart were worth $47,575,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Collier Financial acquired a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 212.6% during the third quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 322 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’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 directly owned 591,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $76,308,944.40. The trade was a 2.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total value of $4,158,004.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 533,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,082,852. This represents a 6.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 261,903 shares of company stock valued at $31,829,749. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America initiated coverage with a “Buy” rating and a $150 price target, signaling materially higher analyst optimism versus the current share level (roughly +17% upside from the cited price).
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results showed a slight EPS beat (reported $0.74 vs. $0.73 est.) and revenue topped estimates; management issued FY2027 EPS guidance of $2.75–$2.85, supporting multiple expansion and investor confidence.
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is rolling out its Scintilla In-Store data platform and expanding private/partner brands, moves that reinforce higher-margin adjacencies (ads, marketplace, fulfillment) and long-term e‑commerce/store integration growth. Walmart Supplier Tech And New Brands Reframe Stores As Data Platforms
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage consensus remains constructive — a “Moderate Buy” consensus was reported, reflecting institutional buy-side alignment but some variance in targets. Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart leadership will participate in upcoming investor events and webcasts — provides management access to investors for strategy updates and Q&A, which can influence near-term sentiment. Walmart Leadership to Participate in Upcoming Investor Events
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart agreed to settle FTC claims over Spark driver pay for roughly $100M total, including a $16M payout to drivers over alleged misleading pay/tip claims — a near-term cash hit and reputational/legal overhang, though not material to operating margins long-term at scale. Walmart agrees to $100M settlement over deceptive pay practices in Spark Driver program Walmart agrees to pay $16 million to its Spark delivery drivers to settle claims it misled them over tips and pay

Walmart Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of WMT stock opened at $127.95 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $79.81 and a one year high of $134.69. 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 has a fifty day moving average price of $120.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $110.07. The stock has a market cap of $1.02 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.65.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released 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. The company had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The company’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. Analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.2475 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $147.00 price target (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 5th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, November 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.42.

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.