Nicola Wealth Management LTD. Sells 14,000 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 176,200 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 14,000 shares during the period. Walmart comprises about 1.8% of Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $19,630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Walmart by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,561 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,955 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $552,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group lifted its stake in Walmart by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 14,475 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,613,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 547 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,362 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.96, for a total value of $1,600,725.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 687,287 shares in the company, valued at $83,821,522.52. This trade represents a 1.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 126,008 shares of company stock worth $15,896,715. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

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.

Walmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $120.27 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $93.43 and a twelve month high of $135.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $126.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market cap of $958.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.20, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. During the same quarter 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. 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 predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WMT. Guggenheim boosted 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. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $137.00 target price (down from $140.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday. Finally, Tigress Financial set a $150.00 target price on Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.71.

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.