WNY Asset Management LLC Makes New $1.40 Million Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

WNY Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 11,277 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,402,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 57.4% during the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 193.0% in the fourth quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 293 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. Finally, Sankala Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Erste Group Bank downgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised Walmart from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.56.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 661,037 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,021,470.96. The trade was a 1.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,300,550.91. This represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 67,729 shares of company stock worth $8,124,931 in the last 90 days. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $111.20 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $115.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $884.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.02, a PEG ratio of 4.14 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $95.42 and a 52 week high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.61 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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. Analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

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.