Centaurus Financial Inc. Invests $11.89 Million in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Centaurus Financial Inc. bought a new position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 104,996 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $11,892,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $19,046,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,364 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,426,753,000 after purchasing an additional 6,517,394 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the second quarter valued at approximately $7,455,131,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,458,529,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,526,238,000 after buying an additional 328,229 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $103.09 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $95.79 and a 1 year high of $135.15. The company has a market capitalization of $820.40 billion, a PE ratio of 37.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $111.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $120.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.83% and a net margin of 3.00%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.68 EPS. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. Analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s fiscal second-quarter results showed continued momentum beyond traditional store sales: revenue reached approximately $187.9 billion, global e-commerce grew 23%, and advertising revenue increased 38%. These higher-growth businesses could support future margins and cash flow. Walmart Growth Engine Hums
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and commentary continue to point to Walmart’s expanding e-commerce, digital advertising, memberships, convenience-led fulfillment, automation and AI initiatives as reasons the recent decline could represent a long-term buying opportunity. Walmart’s scale and value-focused pricing remain important competitive advantages. Walmart Continues to Grow Beyond Retail
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart settled a U.S. Justice Department lawsuit alleging that its pharmacies unlawfully contributed to the opioid epidemic. Resolving the case removes an overhang and reduces legal uncertainty, although the financial terms and any broader implications remain important for investors. Walmart Settles U.S. Opioid Lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights a potentially tougher consumer environment. Walmart’s comparable sales growth was 3.4% excluding pharmacy-related items, while middle-income shoppers appear increasingly focused on necessities and limiting discretionary purchases. Walmart and Home Depot Results
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also questioning whether Walmart’s valuation adequately reflects its strong performance. A high earnings multiple, slower core sales growth and the stock’s position below its moving averages have amplified the impact of the recent selloff. Walmart Selloff Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Executive Vice President Daniel Danker sold 50,644 shares worth approximately $5.3 million. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan to cover taxes on vested equity awards, making it a weaker bearish signal than discretionary insider selling. Walmart Insider Trading Filing

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 3,710 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.10, for a total transaction of $419,601.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 626,299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,834,416.90. This represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Daniel Danker sold 50,644 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.35, for a total transaction of $5,335,345.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 201,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,246,145.20. The trade was a 20.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 77,292 shares of company stock worth $8,421,143. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Freedom Broker upgraded shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, DA Davidson set a $132.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.88.

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.