Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. Takes Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Aug 26th, 2026

Walmart logo Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT – Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 17,843 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,021,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. State Street Corp lifted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 2,242,364 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,426,753,000 after acquiring an additional 6,517,394 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,458,529,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Walmart by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,526,238,000 after purchasing an additional 328,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 36,820,550 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,102,546,000 after purchasing an additional 920,969 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s Sparky AI shopping assistant reportedly generates 40% higher customer spending among users, while the company is also integrating AI into advertising and exploring technology partnerships with OpenAI and ChatGPT. These efforts could lift conversion, basket sizes and future digital-advertising revenue. Walmart Sparky AI article
Positive Sentiment: The launch of Scenario, a women’s fashion brand with most products priced below $25, is designed to attract younger, trend-conscious shoppers and strengthen Walmart’s position in apparel. Its value pricing may help the retailer compete more directly with Amazon. Walmart Scenario fashion brand article
Positive Sentiment: Analysts’ consensus price target of approximately $128 remains well above recent trading levels, suggesting some Wall Street analysts view the selloff as excessive. Walmart also exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue expectations and raised its full-year sales-growth outlook to 4%-5%.
Neutral Sentiment: Walmart is rolling out NFC tap-to-pay across U.S. stores and clubs, improving checkout convenience and aligning with broader mobile-wallet adoption. The change may support engagement but is unlikely to materially alter near-term earnings. Walmart NFC rollout article
Negative Sentiment: U.S. comparable sales increased only 2.6%, below the 3.8% consensus estimate and representing Walmart’s slowest comparable-sales growth in six years. Higher gasoline prices and broader economic pressure may be making consumers more cautious, despite the earnings beat. Walmart comparable-sales miss article
Negative Sentiment: Amazon’s share of U.S. clothing spending doubled to 17% in 2025 from 8.5% in 2019, while Walmart’s share edged lower. The widening gap raises concerns about Walmart’s ability to gain share in an important retail category. Amazon and Walmart clothing-share article
Negative Sentiment: Commentators argue WMT still trades at a premium valuation—roughly 36 times forward earnings—despite decelerating growth and cautious consumer trends. That leaves less room for disappointment and has amplified the post-earnings decline.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $105.38 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $112.75 and its 200-day moving average is $120.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $838.62 billion, a PE ratio of 38.04, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.61. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $95.42 and a 52 week high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.83% and a net margin of 3.00%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.68 earnings per share. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $137.00 target price (down from $146.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings cut Walmart from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore set a $125.00 price objective on Walmart in a report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Walmart from $147.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.88.

Read Our Latest Analysis on WMT

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total value of $2,303,320.08. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,174,579 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,230,306.77. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.34, for a total value of $308,386.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 569,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $60,523,730.02. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 57,064 shares of company stock valued at $6,697,788. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

About Walmart

(Free Report)

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.