Valmark Advisers Inc. Purchases 4,497 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 7.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,837 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,497 shares during the quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $8,555,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $6,458,529,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 188.1% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,663,172 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,199,907,000 after buying an additional 7,614,172 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,426,753,000 after buying an additional 6,517,394 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at about $592,848,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $49,015,626,000 after acquiring an additional 4,304,436 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total value of $1,308,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,300,550.91. The trade was a 8.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total transaction of $1,435,203.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president 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 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 104,505 shares of company stock worth $12,858,514 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $150.00 target price (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price objective (up from $150.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 29th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.85.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT stock opened at $113.90 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market cap of $906.43 billion, a PE ratio of 39.97, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50 day moving average of $120.48 and a 200-day moving average of $122.03. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.23 and a 12-month high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The business had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.61 earnings per share. Walmart’s quarterly revenue 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, sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

More Walmart News

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

Walmart Profile

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.