Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 3,090,688 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 7.8% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 36,570,356 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,090,688 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 0.9% of Franklin Resources Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $3,575,850,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,868,000 after acquiring an additional 21,939 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 16.1% in the first quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 219,573 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $19,276,000 after purchasing an additional 30,412 shares during the last quarter. Noesis Capital Mangement Corp grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 11.4% in the first quarter. Noesis Capital Mangement Corp now owns 2,750 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opes Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 12.8% during the 1st quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,433 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $107.04 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $103.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.85. The stock has a market cap of $853.40 billion, a PE ratio of 40.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.83 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $79.81 and a 12 month high of $109.57.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The company had revenue of $179.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $175.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.58 EPS. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $118.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $127.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Thirty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.18.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.33, for a total value of $222,926.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 621,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,998,684.94. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.78, for a total value of $1,414,612.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 892,940 shares in the company, valued at $96,241,073.20. The trade was a 1.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 133,888 shares of company stock valued at $13,835,383. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Walmart

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.