Bank of America expects Walmart stock to rise another 21%. What does this have to do with AI?

Bank of America raised its target price on shares of Walmart, the largest U.S. retailer, and now expects them to grow by another 21%. The analyst noted the company's leadership in AI applications and strong fundamentals. Among the drivers of revenue growth, he cited the company's proprietary AI agent Sparky, which is capable of independently assembling a grocery cart or comparing prices, as well as performing other similar tasks. Walmart shares hit an all-time high in trading on Wednesday.

Bank of America analyst Robert Ohms raised his target price on Walmart shares from $120 to $125 and maintained his recommendation to buy them (Buy rating), CNBC reports. The new target Oms assumes growth of the company's shares by another 21% from the closing level on September 16.

Ohms emphasized that Walmart is becoming one of the leaders in the use of artificial intelligence as it bets on "agent commerce" - the use of AI agents that are capable of making decisions on their own to complete tasks. According to Ohms, the company's proprietary AI agent, Sparky, is already undergoing tests and will begin performing specific tasks, not just answering questions, in the coming weeks or months. While this market is still in its early stages, Walmart stands out for its scale of business, reach across online and offline channels, unique base of 180 million customers and opportunities to partner with developers of leading language models, according to the expert.

In addition, the analyst called Walmart's consumer outlook strong. It has launched a joint credit card with Synchrony Bank, which could support growth in loyalty programs, the analyst suggested. The retailer buys about two-thirds of its assortment from the U.S., making it less vulnerable to duties. An additional driver, the BofA expert believes, is the growing interest of young shoppers in Walmart's own brands.

The company is also aggressively strengthening its position in delivery: its grocery service is already profitable, reaching nearly all households within a three-hour radius and a quarter within 30 minutes. "We believe that having both offline shoppers and e-commerce associates collecting orders gives Walmart an advantage in speed and freshness of delivery over competitors," Ohms said. He added that new and renovated stores with additional storage and delivery areas will help speed up service and localize logistics, which will be another driver of revenue growth.

At trading on September 17, Walmart shares jumped by 2.6% to $106.1. This became their maximum for the entire time of circulation on the stock exchange. Since the beginning of 2025, the market value of the company has increased by more than 16%. For comparison: the main U.S. stock index S&P 500 for the same period added about 12%.

In early September, another investment firm, Tigress Research, raised its target on Walmart shares. It, like BofA, increased the target from $120 to $125 and maintained a "buy" advisory. Tigress Research, too, emphasized that Walmart is devoting a significant portion of its cash flow to accelerating innovation - from generative AI and robotics to real-time automation technologies. According to a Tigress analyst, this approach is helping the company reduce costs, improve operational efficiency, launch smart stores and undertake major upgrades. At the same time, the retailer is expanding unified online and offline sales and strengthening the value proposition for customers, which supports revenue and profitability growth.

Analysts who follow the dynamics of Walmart shares almost unanimously advise investors to buy them (Buy and Overweight ratings). Out of 40, only one takes a neutral position with a Hold rating, and no one recommends selling. At the same time, the average Wall Street target - $114 per paper - suggests growth of the company's quotations by about 10% more from the closing on September 16.

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