Ransom Advisory Ltd Takes $927,000 Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Ransom Advisory Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 10,562 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $927,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Glenview Trust co raised its holdings in Walmart by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 848,748 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $74,512,000 after buying an additional 4,148 shares during the period. Aspen Investment Management Inc raised its holdings in Walmart by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Aspen Investment Management Inc now owns 47,502 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,170,000 after buying an additional 1,609 shares during the period. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its holdings in Walmart by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 691,500 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $60,707,000 after buying an additional 31,000 shares during the period. Advisory Alpha LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 14.5% during the first quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 33,665 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,955,000 after buying an additional 4,257 shares during the period. Finally, Alaethes Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 9.5% during the first quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC now owns 4,211 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $371,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $102.34 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $815.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.47, a P/E/G ratio of 4.92 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.28 and a 12 month high of $105.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $98.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $95.27.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The retailer reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.06). Walmart had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The firm had revenue of $169.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.600 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.620 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Walmart from $111.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Mizuho reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Walmart from $101.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $117.00 target price on Walmart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $110.76.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.30, for a total value of $216,260.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 626,118 shares in the company, valued at $61,547,399.40. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.14, for a total value of $380,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,056,455 shares in the company, valued at $100,511,128.70. This trade represents a 0.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 121,382 shares of company stock worth $11,718,441 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Walmart

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.