Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Buys 8,830 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 1.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 547,884 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,830 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 0.6% of Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Walmart were worth $56,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Gallacher Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 120.9% during the third quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 4,830 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $502,000 after buying an additional 2,643 shares during the last quarter. First Nebraska Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth about $19,301,000. IPG Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 23.4% during the third quarter. IPG Investment Advisors LLC now owns 43,078 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,477,000 after acquiring an additional 8,159 shares in the last quarter. CrossGen Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. CrossGen Wealth LLC now owns 39,439 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,098,000 after acquiring an additional 571 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,109,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart may be positioned to beat its next earnings estimates, according to Zacks, which points to its history of earnings surprises and factors supporting another potential beat. Why Walmart is Poised to Beat Earnings Estimates Again
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s expanded Sparky AI shopping assistant could support holiday sales by helping customers shop and potentially encouraging larger orders. Can Walmart’s Expanded Sparky AI Boost Holiday Shopping and Sales?
• Positive Sentiment: A report says Walmart’s e-commerce sales are growing faster than Amazon’s, suggesting its online business is gaining momentum. 1 Stat That Makes Walmart Hard to Ignore This November
• Neutral Sentiment: CTO Suresh Kumar sold 166,342 shares, and EVP Daniel Bartlett sold 3,346 shares. Both trades were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans; the sales may draw attention, but do not necessarily indicate a change in their views of the company. Kumar SEC filing Bartlett SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish commentary highlights Walmart’s high valuation, with one article returning to a “strong sell” rating and another warning that the valuation may be stretched. Valuation concerns could weigh on sentiment even as the business outlook remains constructive. Walmart: Back To The Strong Sell Rating Walmart’s Defensive Reputation and Valuation

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WMT. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Walmart from $147.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 21st. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their target price on Walmart from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $132.41.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.60, for a total value of $349,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 563,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,940,371.80. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 5,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $575,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 110,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,699,680. This represents a 4.33% 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 268,222 shares of company stock worth $31,604,051 in the last ninety days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ WMT opened at $124.86 on Wednesday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.88 and a 1 year high of $135.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $990.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.08, a PEG ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $111.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $118.46.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. 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 prior year, the company posted $0.68 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 EPS for the current fiscal 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.