New York, February 22, 2026, 11:16 EST — Market closed
- Walmart shares finished Friday at $122.99, dropping 1.5% and stretching their two-day slide that followed the company’s outlook.
- The stock stayed under pressure after a cautious profit outlook, plus a new analyst downgrade—even as the company rolled out a buyback and boosted its dividend.
- This week, investors are eyeing U.S. consumer data for any signals on spending habits and inflation trends.
Walmart Inc dropped 1.5% by Friday’s close, the stock slipping as investors weighed a cautious outlook from the retailer and fresh analyst commentary ahead of the coming week.
Walmart’s position near the heart of U.S. household budgets gives its moves extra weight. A cautious stance here can spill over to other consumer staples and big-box players—especially now, after the stock’s strong rally raised expectations.
Macro signals remain firmly on traders’ radar. Retailers are still wrestling with persistent costs, fickle demand, and tariff chatter—plus, any hint of consumer confidence slipping usually turns up in staples first.
Walmart’s Thursday filing showed fourth-quarter revenue landing at $190.66 billion, with adjusted earnings per share coming in at $0.74. Looking ahead, the retailer is projecting fiscal 2027 adjusted EPS between $2.75 and $2.85, and sees first-quarter adjusted EPS in a $0.63 to $0.65 range. The company’s “adjusted” numbers exclude certain items, and “constant currency” results back out FX impacts. Walmart also rolled out a fresh $30 billion share buyback plan and noted that U.S. comparable sales—stores open at least a year—were up 4.6%. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/10…
Walmart bumped up its annual dividend to $0.99 a share—5% higher than before—with quarterly payouts set at $0.2475. “Dividends continue to be a part of our diversified capital returns approach,” Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said in the announcement. https://corporate.walmart.com/news/2026/02…
HSBC cut Walmart to “hold” from “buy” on Friday, flagging what it called weak guidance despite a relatively steady consumer backdrop. The analysts wrote, “It is hard to see a marked deterioration in the trading environment,” but suggested near-term momentum “may be limited.” Truist Securities took a different tack in its own note, bumping up its price target to $139 and sticking with a buy. https://www.investing.com/news/stock-marke… https://www.investing.com/news/analyst-rat…
Friday’s pullback landed even as the major indexes closed in positive territory. Investors kept shifting between growth names and defensive plays. Target picked up 0.9% during the session; Walmart slipped 1.5%, MarketWatch data showed.
Bulls have to wrestle with a big caveat: Walmart’s outlook highlights nagging questions about costs, currency swings, and trade policy, while the stock itself long ago shed its supermarket discount. If consumers pull back more sharply or rivals ramp up price competition, the boost from advertising and membership fees might not be enough to protect margins right away.
Tuesday brings a new look at consumer sentiment—February’s consumer confidence numbers from the Conference Board drop at 10:00 a.m. ET.
The Producer Price Index for January lands Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET, and investors will be quick to scrutinize fresh supply chain inflation numbers. The report tends to jolt rate forecasts—and that can ripple through retail valuations.
Walmart faces its next hurdle when the market reopens Monday, as investors weigh whether to return. Tuesday brings the consumer confidence reading, a data point that could sway sentiment on spending as March approaches.
