Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC Sells 63,977 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 55.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 50,903 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 63,977 shares during the period. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $5,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth $1,709,000. CWM LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 24.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,175,703 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $121,168,000 after purchasing an additional 229,220 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 0.8% during the second quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 5,091,126 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $497,771,000 after buying an additional 42,645 shares in the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. increased its holdings in Walmart by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 63,782 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,567,000 after buying an additional 9,061 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Walmart by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 293,866 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,286,000 after buying an additional 14,487 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $138.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Walmart from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price objective on Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $127.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.76.

Walmart Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $124.32 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $122.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $79.81 and a 1 year high of $134.69. The firm has a market cap of $990.85 billion, a PE ratio of 45.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.66.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The company’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.2475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s payout ratio is presently 34.31%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $1,214,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 108,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,153,389.24. The trade was a 8.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 279,703 shares of company stock worth $34,140,843. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.