Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Stock Price Down 7.3% – Here’s Why

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT)’s share price was down 7.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $120.39 and last traded at $121.34. Approximately 52,527,852 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 101% from the average daily volume of 26,146,713 shares. The stock had previously closed at $130.85.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart posted stronger-than-expected Q1 results, with revenue of $177.75 billion and EPS of $0.66, helped by grocery demand, U.S. same-store sales growth, and continued e-commerce momentum. Walmart Inc. (WMT) Q1 2027 Earnings Call Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Global e-commerce sales rose 26% and advertising revenue jumped 37%, showing Walmart’s digital and marketplace businesses are still growing quickly. Walmart reports revenue growth of 7.3%, up 5.9% in constant currency (cc)
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reaffirmed its strategic growth areas, including membership fee growth and higher gross profit rate, which supports the long-term earnings story. Walmart Goes AI Native and Doesn’t Look Back
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts remained constructive ahead of earnings, citing strong e-commerce growth and raising price targets, but those bullish calls were not enough to offset the cautious outlook. Walmart Stock: Here’s Why Analysts Are Raising Price Targets Before Q1 Earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart’s Q2 guidance came in below expectations, with EPS and revenue forecasts both short of consensus, which is the main reason the stock is falling today. Walmart Inc. (WMT) Q1 2027 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Management said higher fuel prices are pressuring consumers and Walmart’s own transportation and logistics costs, creating a near-term margin and demand headwind. Walmart stock falls on cautious earnings outlook as gas prices hit consumers’ wallets
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart also kept its full-year outlook conservative versus analyst expectations, signaling it is not ready to forecast a stronger acceleration in profits yet. Walmart Posts Q1 Beat: Stock Sags as Bar Was Already Sky-High

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 9th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.88.

Walmart Stock Down 7.3%

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $126.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $967.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.28, a PEG ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.61 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total value of $2,460,201.36. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,023,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $509,780,812.39. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total transaction of $4,158,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,082,852. This trade represents a 6.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 154,065 shares of company stock worth $19,281,401. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,709,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Walmart by 2.9% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,010,886 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $104,182,000 after purchasing an additional 28,026 shares in the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners grew its stake in Walmart by 466.6% in the third quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 13,343 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,375,000 after purchasing an additional 10,988 shares in the last quarter. Florida Trust Wealth Management Co grew its stake in Walmart by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Florida Trust Wealth Management Co now owns 196,648 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $21,909,000 after purchasing an additional 12,794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic bought a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,378,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Walmart

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.