Levin Capital Strategies L.P. Cuts Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Levin Capital Strategies L.P. reduced its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 5.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 130,826 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 6,984 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises about 1.2% of Levin Capital Strategies L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Levin Capital Strategies L.P.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $16,259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AR Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.4% during the first quarter. AR Asset Management Inc. now owns 82,265 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,224,000 after purchasing an additional 1,965 shares in the last quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 21.0% during the 1st quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 5,359 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $666,000 after purchasing an additional 931 shares in the last quarter. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,625 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,693,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division increased its stake in Walmart by 30.3% during the 1st quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division now owns 590,623 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $73,403,000 after buying an additional 137,361 shares during the period. Finally, Alpha Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,856 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 306 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Erste Group Bank cut Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $150.00 price target (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.85.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total transaction of $1,435,203.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 125,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,985,527.94. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.08, for a total value of $1,628,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 661,037 shares in the company, valued at $82,021,470.96. This trade represents a 1.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 a total of 67,729 shares of company stock worth $8,124,931 over the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: RBC reaffirmed an outperform rating on Walmart and set a $137 price target, signaling meaningful upside from current levels and helping support sentiment. Benzinga report on RBC rating reaffirmation
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is being described as a solid growth stock, with articles citing above-average financial growth and positioning that could help it outperform the market. Zacks growth stock article
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart partnered with ReturnPro to refurbish and resell returned items, a move that could improve e-commerce margins, recover value from returns, and reduce waste. Yahoo Finance ReturnPro partnership article

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $109.33 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $95.29 and a 1 year high of $135.15. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $117.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $122.09. The firm has a market cap of $870.06 billion, a PE ratio of 38.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 0.60.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. The business had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.