Heritage Investors Management Corp Sells 6,358 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Heritage Investors Management Corp lessened its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 491,628 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 6,358 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 1.6% of Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings in Walmart were worth $54,772,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,868,000 after acquiring an additional 21,939 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $800,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Management increased its stake in Walmart by 3.5% in the first quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 50,307 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,416,000 after acquiring an additional 1,715 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 0.9% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 13,008 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its stake in Walmart by 1.2% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 91,341 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,931,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $121.34 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $126.83 and a 200-day moving average of $120.03. The firm has a market cap of $967.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.28, a P/E/G ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.65. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $93.43 and a 1-year high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $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. Sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reported Q1 EPS of $0.66, ahead of estimates, on revenue of $177.75 billion, also above expectations. The company also highlighted strong underlying growth drivers, including 26% global e-commerce growth and 37% growth in advertising revenue. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Management reaffirmed its long-term strategy and kept annual targets in place, which supports the view that Walmart’s core business remains resilient despite a cautious consumer backdrop. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts noted that Walmart continues to benefit from value-seeking shoppers, but the market is also watching whether the company can sustain growth if consumers become more stressed by inflation and higher fuel costs. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart’s Q2 guidance came in below analyst forecasts, with EPS and revenue outlooks both disappointing investors. That weaker near-term guidance is the main reason the stock is falling today. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Management warned that high gas prices are squeezing household budgets and raising Walmart’s transportation and logistics costs, increasing the risk of margin pressure even as shoppers shift toward cheaper purchases. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Guggenheim increased their target price on Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $137.00 price target (up from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $138.91.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.21, for a total transaction of $2,566,989.36. Following the sale, the director owned 4,193,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $554,488,078.95. This represents a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 109,983 shares of company stock valued at $13,908,797 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.