Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Acquired by Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 389.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 254,219 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 202,232 shares during the period. Walmart comprises about 0.8% of Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest position. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $26,200,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 28.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,868,000 after purchasing an additional 21,939 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $800,000 after buying an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Management grew its holdings in Walmart by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 50,307 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,416,000 after buying an additional 1,715 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 13,008 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its position in Walmart by 1.2% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 91,341 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,931,000 after buying an additional 1,048 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $126.52 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $1.01 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $123.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.06. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $79.81 and a 52 week high of $134.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.2475 per share. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $145.00 price target on Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $147.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 target price on shares of Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $1,214,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 108,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,153,389.24. This trade represents a 8.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total transaction of $4,158,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,082,852. This trade represents a 6.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 278,278 shares of company stock valued at $33,974,118. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.