Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $147.00 to $132.00. The stock had previously closed at $114.30, but opened at $106.38. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the stock. Walmart shares last traded at $104.0670, with a volume of 22,416,160 shares changing hands.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 price objective (down from $140.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday. Evercore set a $125.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Walmart from $137.00 to $131.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Buy rating, four have given 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 price target of $131.88.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 8.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total transaction of $2,303,320.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,174,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,230,306.77. The trade was a 0.46% 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 have sold 57,064 shares of company stock worth $6,697,788 over the last ninety days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reported adjusted earnings of $0.81 per share and revenue of $187.94 billion, beating consensus estimates of $0.74 and $186.62 billion, respectively. Revenue increased 5.9% year over year. Walmart earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Growth businesses remain strong: global e-commerce sales rose 23%, advertising revenue increased 38%, and global membership revenue grew 17%. These trends support the long-term investment case despite slower core-store growth. Walmart second-quarter highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart plans to use approximately $2.9 billion in tariff refunds to help lower prices, potentially strengthening its value proposition as consumers become more budget-conscious. The rollout of tap-to-pay, including Apple Pay and Google Pay, may also improve checkout convenience. Walmart tap to pay rollout
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts retained bullish ratings—including buy, outperform, and overweight—but lowered price targets after the earnings release. New targets range from $120 to $140, indicating analysts still see meaningful upside but have moderated their expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. comparable sales grew 2.6%, below expectations near 3.5%, marking Walmart’s weakest domestic comparable-sales growth in more than six years. Analysts cited weakness in health and wellness and questioned the trajectory of the core U.S. business.
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter guidance fell short of consensus: Walmart projected adjusted EPS of $0.62–$0.64 versus $0.68 expected and revenue of $183.1–$184.5 billion versus $188.2 billion expected. The timing of Flipkart’s promotional event is also expected to reduce quarterly sales growth by more than 100 basis points.
• Negative Sentiment: The stock’s elevated valuation increases sensitivity to any slowdown, while higher energy costs and consumer trade-offs are raising broader concerns about the health of U.S. retail spending.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wheelhouse Advisory Group LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 6.8% during the second quarter. Wheelhouse Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,853 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $663,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 86,726 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $9,823,000 after purchasing an additional 2,138 shares in the last quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC grew its position in Walmart by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 3,574,219 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $404,816,000 after purchasing an additional 265,808 shares during the period. Burford Brothers Inc. grew its position in Walmart by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. now owns 23,921 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,709,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, AXQ Capital LP increased its stake in Walmart by 214.8% during the 2nd quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 28,488 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,227,000 after purchasing an additional 19,438 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $825.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.61. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $113.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $121.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.68 earnings per share. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

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.