Kovack Advisors Inc. Has $8.88 Million Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 119.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 79,714 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 43,370 shares during the period. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $8,881,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WMT. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,458,529,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 188.1% in the 3rd 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 raised its holdings in Walmart by 6.8% in the 4th 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 stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $592,848,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Walmart by 1.0% during the 4th 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. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total transaction of $1,308,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,300,550.91. This represents a 8.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.08, for a total transaction of $1,628,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 661,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $82,021,470.96. This represents a 1.95% 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 have sold 117,008 shares of company stock worth $14,492,704 over the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Trading Down 0.1%

WMT opened at $120.50 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $93.43 and a twelve month high of $135.15. 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 company has a fifty day moving average of $125.36 and a 200-day moving average of $121.66. The stock has a market cap of $958.95 billion, a PE ratio of 42.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on WMT. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $138.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Walmart in a report on Friday, February 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Freedom Capital raised Walmart from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.85.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is expanding Wing drone delivery to seven new U.S. metro areas, with service expected to reach more than 270 stores and potentially over 40 million Americans by next year. The move reinforces Walmart’s last-mile advantage and could improve delivery speed and customer convenience. Walmart Expands Wing Drone Delivery As Last Mile Story Takes Flight
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart introduced a new Prepaid Consolidation service aimed at making its supply chain more efficient, which should help suppliers move goods faster and support the company’s everyday-low-price strategy. Lower logistics friction can be a margin tailwind over time. Walmart Inc. (WMT) Focused on Enhancing Supply Chain Efficiency with New Service
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s head of growth said AI is reshaping its advertising strategy, suggesting the retailer sees more room to monetize its platform through higher-value digital ads. That could support revenue growth beyond core retail. Walmart’s head of growth says AI is rewriting the rules for its fast-growing ads business
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Walmart’s AI-powered warehouses are reducing the time needed for workers to unload trucks point to continued automation gains in the distribution network, which may improve efficiency and labor productivity. Walmart’s AI-powered warehouses are slashing the time it takes store employees to unload trucks
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart presented at Evercore’s consumer and retail conference, but no major new financial guidance or transformational update was highlighted in the article. Walmart Inc. (WMT) Presents at The 6th Annual Evercore Consumer & Retail Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary appears mixed on Walmart alongside other consumer staples names, suggesting sentiment is not universally bullish despite the company’s operational progress. Analysts Have Conflicting Sentiments on These Consumer Goods Companies: Walmart (WMT), Campbell Soup (CPB) and JM Smucker (SJM)

Walmart Company 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.