Walmart Inc. $WMT Position Trimmed by Sovran Advisors LLC

Sovran Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 30.4% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 24,948 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 10,909 shares during the period. Sovran Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $3,291,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. TSA Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the first quarter worth approximately $441,000. Warburton Capital Management LLC grew its position in Walmart by 4.3% during the first quarter. Warburton Capital Management LLC now owns 5,631 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $727,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the first quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Avid Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. Avid Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,315 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $412,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. Finally, Fulcrum Capital LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 target price (up from $150.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 price target (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 11th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.85.

Walmart Stock Up 1.5%

WMT traded up $1.69 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $113.90. 12,452,368 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 21,901,888. The company has a market cap of $906.43 billion, a PE ratio of 39.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $120.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $94.23 and a one year high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.61 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is rolling out more wellness benefits at Sam’s Club, including Weight Watchers perks, which could deepen member loyalty, support renewals, and boost recurring membership revenue. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is also getting attention for broad price cuts across groceries and household staples, which should help reinforce its reputation as a defensive, inflation-fighting retailer and drive traffic to stores and clubs. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer said Walmart is one of the “greatest companies on earth” and called the recent pullback an “incredible buying opportunity,” helping support sentiment around the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary around Walmart’s health event and its AI shopping efforts highlights longer-term strategic investments, but these items are more thematic than immediate catalysts for the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage comparing Walmart’s AI shopping race with Amazon underscores competitive pressure in retail tech, but it does not point to any near-term operational setback for Walmart. Article Title

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 3,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.64, for a total value of $413,891.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 630,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,074,186.76. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total value of $2,303,320.08. Following the sale, the director owned 4,174,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,230,306.77. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 104,505 shares of company stock valued at $12,858,514 in the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.