Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Stock Price Down 2.5% – Here’s What Happened

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT)’s stock price fell 2.5% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $130.33 and last traded at $130.85. 28,126,722 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 8% from the average session volume of 25,925,941 shares. The stock had previously closed at $134.20.

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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on WMT. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.71.

Walmart Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $126.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $120.03. The company has a market capitalization of $958.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.89, a PEG ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.65.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.61 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total value of $2,555,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 486,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.08, for a total transaction of $1,628,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 661,037 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,021,470.96. The trade was a 1.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 126,008 shares of company stock worth $15,896,715 in the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. WNY Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,402,000. Wellington Grp LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Grp LLC now owns 11,801 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,467,000 after acquiring an additional 744 shares during the period. Montchanin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the 1st quarter valued at about $455,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. now owns 74,975 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $9,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904 shares during the period. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 21,583.0% in the 1st quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 118,389 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $14,713,000 after acquiring an additional 117,843 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.