Principle Wealth Partners LLC Grows Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Principle Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 82.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 35,185 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 15,934 shares during the period. Principle Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $3,920,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake 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 worth $1,199,907,000 after buying an additional 7,614,172 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake 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 buying an additional 4,304,436 shares during the period. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 20.5% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 23,497,921 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,413,236,000 after buying an additional 4,004,277 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $294,621,000. Finally, Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,061.8% during the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,042,724 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $338,989,000 after buying an additional 2,780,817 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart posted solid first-quarter results, with revenue of $177.8 billion and EPS of $0.66, while e-commerce sales rose 26% and advertising revenue jumped 37%, highlighting continued strength in digital and membership-driven businesses.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remained constructive after earnings: Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating and said Walmart is well positioned to gain share in a price-sensitive environment, while BTIG and BNP Paribas Exane also kept positive ratings despite modestly trimming price targets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart disclosed pre-arranged insider sales by CEO John Furner and EVP Christopher James Nicholas, but both transactions were made under 10b5-1 plans, which typically limits how much investors read into them.
• Neutral Sentiment: News reports also noted leadership changes, including the departure of Sam’s Club COO Tom Ward and U.S. stores EVP Cedric Clark, adding some uncertainty but not appearing to change the company’s near-term operating outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Shares weakened after Walmart issued second-quarter EPS guidance below consensus and reaffirmed full-year targets that also came in below Wall Street expectations, prompting concerns that margin pressure could continue.
• Negative Sentiment: Management said elevated fuel prices are pressuring both consumers and Walmart’s own costs, reinforcing worries that spending could soften and profitability could stay under pressure in the coming quarters.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.96, for a total value of $1,600,725.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 687,287 shares in the company, valued at $83,821,522.52. This trade represents a 1.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This trade represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 126,008 shares of company stock worth $15,896,715 over the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $120.27 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market cap of $958.67 billion, a PE ratio of 42.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.65. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $126.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.03. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $93.43 and a 12-month high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The firm had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. 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, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 target price (up from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $137.00 price target (up from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.71.

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.