Walmart Inc. $WMT Stock: VestGen Advisors LLC Lowers Holdings

VestGen Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 9.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 149,466 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 14,752 shares during the quarter. VestGen Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $15,533,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth $7,455,131,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,905,655,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at about $796,677,000. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in Walmart by 54.0% during the 2nd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 18,607,297 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,107,462,000 after purchasing an additional 6,525,224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 44.4% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 20,796,957 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,355,463,000 after purchasing an additional 6,393,326 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Freedom Broker upgraded Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. UBS Group dropped their target price on Walmart from $141.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $132.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $132.41.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.60, for a total value of $349,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 563,353 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,940,371.80. This represents a 0.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.60, for a total value of $1,582,875.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 634,790 shares in the company, valued at $76,555,674. This represents a 2.03% decrease in their position. 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. Over the last three months, insiders sold 102,244 shares of company stock worth $11,112,044. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart lowered the cost of its Thanksgiving meal basket by $5, reinforcing its value proposition as consumers remain sensitive to food prices. Affordable holiday offerings could support traffic and market-share gains. Walmart Thanksgiving menu comparison
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart said AI training has increased technology confidence among its more than 2.1 million associates. Broader employee adoption could improve productivity and customer service over time. Walmart AI training for workers
• Positive Sentiment: The retailer is expanding its digital ecosystem by opening its store to AI shopping agents and adding controls for those transactions. Walmart is also partnering with Care Access to add three clinical-trial centers, supporting longer-term growth in digital commerce and healthcare services. Walmart AI shopping agents
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary continues to compare Walmart with Tesco and MercadoLibre, highlighting Walmart’s scale and expanding digital operations but also its elevated valuation and profitability considerations. WMT versus MercadoLibre
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart’s potential to benefit from advertising, e-commerce, automation and healthcare remains part of the investment case, although execution and valuation are key factors for investors.
• Negative Sentiment: The Federal Trade Commission demanded data from Walmart and other companies about personalized pricing. The inquiry could increase compliance costs or create reputational and regulatory risks if regulators find consumers are treated unfairly, though no wrongdoing was alleged. FTC personalized pricing inquiry
• Negative Sentiment: Exchange-traded funds were reported as net sellers of Walmart shares, creating a modest technical headwind and signaling some portfolio rebalancing pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: A lawsuit alleges Walmart inflated the weight of shrimp packages with ice. Although the financial impact is unclear, the claim adds potential legal costs and negative publicity. Walmart shrimp lawsuit

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $118.77 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $942.29 billion, a PE ratio of 42.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.58. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $109.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $118.34. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.88 and a 1 year high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company 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, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Profile

Walmart Inc (NASDAQ:WMT) operates a global retail business through a network of supercenters, supermarkets, discount stores, neighborhood markets, warehouse clubs and e-commerce platforms. Its stores and websites sell a broad assortment of merchandise, including groceries, consumables, health and wellness products, apparel, electronics, home goods, toys and other general merchandise.

The company organizes its operations into Walmart U.S., Walmart International and Sam’s Club U.S. Walmart U.S.