Northcape Wealth Management LLC Invests $5.82 Million in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Northcape Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 51,351 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $5,816,000. Walmart comprises approximately 1.5% of Northcape Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Walmart in the second quarter valued at about $5,863,000. Strathmore Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the second quarter worth about $433,000. United Bank bought a new position in Walmart during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,041,000. Uptick Partners LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the second quarter valued at $4,308,000. Finally, CM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the second quarter valued at approximately $456,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.34, for a total transaction of $308,386.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 569,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,523,730.02. This represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total value of $1,435,203.96. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 125,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,985,527.94. The trade was a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 57,064 shares of company stock valued at $6,697,788 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity may indicate increased near-term bullish interest. Investors purchased 166,747 call options, about 33% above the typical daily volume. However, options activity is speculative and does not guarantee further gains.
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is rolling out tap-to-pay and NFC capabilities across its U.S. stores and clubs. The move could improve checkout convenience, support mobile-wallet adoption and strengthen customer engagement as digital sales and membership become more important. Can Walmart’s Tap to Pay Push Strengthen Customer Engagement?
• Positive Sentiment: The company is introducing Scenario, a mostly sub-$25 fashion brand aimed at younger shoppers. Walmart hopes the offering will attract value-conscious consumers and improve its competitive position against Amazon in apparel. Walmart Aims to Take On Amazon With Trendier Apparel
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart’s latest quarter exceeded expectations, with adjusted earnings of $0.81 per share versus roughly $0.74 expected and revenue of $187.94 billion, up 5.9% year over year. Full-year sales guidance was also raised to 4%-5%, but the outlook implies moderating growth.
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. comparable sales growth slowed to 2.6%, compared with 4.1% in the prior quarter and 4.6% a year earlier. Investors remain concerned that cautious consumers and uneven spending are pressuring traffic and discretionary purchases.
• Negative Sentiment: Several analysts reduced Walmart’s price targets or issued more cautious forecasts after the earnings report. Critics also argue that the stock remains expensive at roughly 36 times forward earnings despite decelerating growth, limiting upside.

Walmart Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of WMT stock opened at $106.49 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $113.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.09. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $95.42 and a 12-month high of $135.15. The company has a market capitalization of $847.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.83% and a net margin of 3.00%.The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.68 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WMT. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective (up from $150.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Evercore set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday. Oppenheimer downgraded Walmart from a “market perform” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $128.00 target price (down from $137.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.88.

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.