EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 9.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 90,883 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 7,707 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $10,125,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Beacon Financial Strategies CORP purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,335 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.63, for a total value of $166,381.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 636,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,369,743.09. This trade represents a 0.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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 that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.21, for a total transaction of $2,566,989.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,193,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $554,488,078.95. This represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 126,008 shares of company stock worth $15,896,715 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Headlines 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $137.00 price objective (up from $130.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.71.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $120.27 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $93.43 and a 52 week high of $135.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $958.67 billion, a PE ratio of 42.20, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.65. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $126.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $120.03.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.61 EPS. The firm’s revenue 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, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal 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.