Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Bought by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 13.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,850,595 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 335,786 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $323,157,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC raised 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 during the period. Sankala Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart enters the report with a strong earnings track record, having exceeded revenue expectations for 25 consecutive quarters. Analysts also see potential for another earnings beat, supported by e-commerce momentum and a growing contribution from Walmart Connect advertising. Walmart Q2 Preview
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s grocery leadership, expanding online business and higher-margin retail-media operations remain important long-term strengths. Advertising growth could help offset the cost of competitive pricing and faster delivery. DA Davidson also reiterated a Buy rating. Retail stagnates, ad dollars help Walmart stay the course
• Neutral Sentiment: Options traders expect a significant post-earnings move, highlighting elevated volatility and the possibility that results or guidance could materially change the stock’s near-term direction. Barchart data ahead of Walmart earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Thousands of price reductions may support customer traffic but could slow sales growth and pressure profit margins. Same-store sales momentum has moderated, increasing investor dependence on advertising and other higher-margin businesses. Walmart sales growth expected to slow
• Negative Sentiment: Several previews characterize WMT as expensive ahead of earnings, with a price-to-earnings ratio near 40 and a cautious outlook already weighing on sentiment. Investors may require a clear earnings or guidance upside to justify the valuation. Walmart valuation concern ahead of Q2 earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart’s grocery advantage faces a margin test as shoppers increasingly purchase additional goods from Amazon, while elevated costs and cautious consumers could limit profitability. Walmart grocery margin test

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WMT. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Oppenheimer downgraded Walmart from a “market perform” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Wednesday. Mizuho set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, July 27th. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $150.00 target price (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.50.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total value of $1,435,203.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 125,067 shares in the company, valued at $14,985,527.94. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.19, for a total transaction of $342,751.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 574,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $67,953,695.07. This trade represents a 0.50% 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,164 shares of company stock worth $6,389,402. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $114.30 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $909.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.11, a P/E/G ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.61. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $95.42 and a 1-year high of $135.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $114.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.49.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.66. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The firm had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.61 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.