Advisortrust Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Advisortrust Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 55,859 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $6,223,000. Walmart accounts for about 2.7% of Advisortrust Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,709,000. Vise Technologies Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 42.1% during the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 275,341 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,676,000 after buying an additional 81,635 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Walmart by 2.9% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,010,886 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $104,182,000 after acquiring an additional 28,026 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $40,855,000. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 466.6% in the third quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 13,343 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,375,000 after acquiring an additional 10,988 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $117.18 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.23 and a 12-month high of $135.15. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $124.61 and a 200 day moving average of $122.11. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $932.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.37 and a beta of 0.60.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS 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 company had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.61 EPS. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter 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 anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Craig Hallum set a $150.00 price target on Walmart in a report on Friday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.85.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total transaction of $359,368.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 577,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,607,543.76. The trade was a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of Walmart 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 approximately $14,985,527.94. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 117,246 shares of company stock worth $14,493,147 in the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.