Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd Acquires Shares of 366,712 Walmart Inc. $WMT

Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 366,712 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $40,855,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Beacon Financial Strategies CORP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WMT. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, April 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total value of $359,368.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 577,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,607,543.76. This represents a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.96, for a total transaction of $1,600,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 687,287 shares in the company, valued at $83,821,522.52. The trade was a 1.87% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 126,008 shares of company stock valued at $15,896,715 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.9%

NASDAQ WMT opened at $120.27 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $126.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.03. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $93.43 and a 12 month high of $135.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $958.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.20, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.65.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.61 earnings per share. Walmart’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. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart posted solid first-quarter results, with revenue of $177.8 billion and EPS of $0.66, while e-commerce sales rose 26% and advertising revenue jumped 37%, highlighting continued strength in digital and membership-driven businesses.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remained constructive after earnings: Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating and said Walmart is well positioned to gain share in a price-sensitive environment, while BTIG and BNP Paribas Exane also kept positive ratings despite modestly trimming price targets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart disclosed pre-arranged insider sales by CEO John Furner and EVP Christopher James Nicholas, but both transactions were made under 10b5-1 plans, which typically limits how much investors read into them.
• Neutral Sentiment: News reports also noted leadership changes, including the departure of Sam’s Club COO Tom Ward and U.S. stores EVP Cedric Clark, adding some uncertainty but not appearing to change the company’s near-term operating outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Shares weakened after Walmart issued second-quarter EPS guidance below consensus and reaffirmed full-year targets that also came in below Wall Street expectations, prompting concerns that margin pressure could continue.
• Negative Sentiment: Management said elevated fuel prices are pressuring both consumers and Walmart’s own costs, reinforcing worries that spending could soften and profitability could stay under pressure in the coming quarters.

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.