Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Stock Price Down 1.2% – Should You Sell?

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) dropped 1.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $106.93 and last traded at $107.14. Approximately 19,113,962 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 26% from the average session volume of 25,683,492 shares. The stock had previously closed at $108.42.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Dunkin’ delivery expands Walmart’s digital ecosystem. Walmart’s partnership with Dunkin’ adds restaurant delivery to its three-month-old service, broadening convenience offerings and giving the retailer another opportunity to increase customer engagement, order frequency and delivery revenue while competing with DoorDash and Uber Eats. Walmart Shoppers Can Now Get Dunkin’ Delivered
• Positive Sentiment: Fraud prevention could become an additional retail technology opportunity. Walmart’s work with Amazon on fraud prevention highlights its efforts to protect shoppers and potentially develop technology and services that improve trust, retention and the economics of digital commerce. Amazon and Walmart Turn Fraud Prevention Into a Retail Product
• Neutral Sentiment: Retail comparisons show Walmart remains a key consumer bellwether. Recent large-format retailer results point to a divided, or “K-shaped,” consumer economy: higher-income shoppers continue spending in some discretionary categories, while value-focused consumers face pressure from elevated grocery costs. This creates both traffic opportunities and potential margin challenges for Walmart. Retail Earnings Expose a Bigger Divide in the U.S. Consumer Economy
• Neutral Sentiment: Haleon’s improved shelf placement reinforces Walmart’s importance to suppliers. Better positioning for Haleon brands such as Sensodyne may support product visibility and sales, though the report primarily benefits Haleon and does not materially change Walmart’s financial outlook. Haleon Secures Better Shelf Space at Walmart
• Negative Sentiment: Tariff and margin concerns are weighing on the investment case. Mixed retail results suggest Walmart may face pressure balancing value pricing with higher product costs, while its elevated earnings multiple leaves less room for execution disappointments.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory scrutiny adds an overhang. The Department of Justice’s investigation into rising beef prices has expanded to Walmart and other retailers. No wrongdoing has been established, but the inquiry creates potential legal, reputational and compliance risks.
• Neutral Sentiment: An executive share sale was limited and prearranged. EVP Daniel Bartlett sold 3,950 shares worth approximately $415,000 under a Rule 10b5-1 plan, reducing his direct holdings by only 0.63%; the transaction is therefore a weak trading signal. Daniel Bartlett Sells Walmart Shares

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Walmart from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 21st. DA Davidson set a $132.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $126.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, August 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Walmart to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.88.

Walmart Trading Down 1.2%

The business’s 50-day moving average is $110.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $119.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $850.02 billion, a PE ratio of 38.68, a PEG ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.59.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.83% and a net margin of 3.00%.The company’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $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. On average, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Guggina sold 11,978 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total transaction of $1,435,203.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 125,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,985,527.94. The trade was a 8.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Christopher Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.34, for a total transaction of $308,386.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 569,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,523,730.02. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 81,242 shares of company stock valued at $8,836,446 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bell & Brown Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,451,000. Advisortrust Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 20.2% during the first quarter. Advisortrust Partners LLC now owns 67,142 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,344,000 after buying an additional 11,283 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA grew its holdings in Walmart by 253.3% in the 1st quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA now owns 384,034 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $47,728,000 after buying an additional 275,337 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in Walmart by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 2,416,580 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $300,333,000 after acquiring an additional 68,632 shares during the period. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. increased its position in Walmart by 42.1% in the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 275,341 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,676,000 after acquiring an additional 81,635 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.