Kovack Advisors Inc. Has $8.88 Million Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 119.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 79,714 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 43,370 shares during the quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $8,881,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Walmart by 57.4% during the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Clayton Financial Group LLC increased its position in Walmart by 193.0% during the 4th quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. 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 report on Friday, May 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 price target on Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price target on Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.85.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $120.50 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $125.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $121.66. The firm has a market cap of $958.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.28, a P/E/G ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $93.43 and a 12 month high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.66. The business had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $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. On average, analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is expanding Wing drone delivery to seven new U.S. metro areas, with service expected to reach more than 270 stores and potentially over 40 million Americans by next year. The move reinforces Walmart’s last-mile advantage and could improve delivery speed and customer convenience. Walmart Expands Wing Drone Delivery As Last Mile Story Takes Flight
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart introduced a new Prepaid Consolidation service aimed at making its supply chain more efficient, which should help suppliers move goods faster and support the company’s everyday-low-price strategy. Lower logistics friction can be a margin tailwind over time. Walmart Inc. (WMT) Focused on Enhancing Supply Chain Efficiency with New Service
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s head of growth said AI is reshaping its advertising strategy, suggesting the retailer sees more room to monetize its platform through higher-value digital ads. That could support revenue growth beyond core retail. Walmart’s head of growth says AI is rewriting the rules for its fast-growing ads business
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Walmart’s AI-powered warehouses are reducing the time needed for workers to unload trucks point to continued automation gains in the distribution network, which may improve efficiency and labor productivity. Walmart’s AI-powered warehouses are slashing the time it takes store employees to unload trucks
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart presented at Evercore’s consumer and retail conference, but no major new financial guidance or transformational update was highlighted in the article. Walmart Inc. (WMT) Presents at The 6th Annual Evercore Consumer & Retail Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary appears mixed on Walmart alongside other consumer staples names, suggesting sentiment is not universally bullish despite the company’s operational progress. Analysts Have Conflicting Sentiments on These Consumer Goods Companies: Walmart (WMT), Campbell Soup (CPB) and JM Smucker (SJM)

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total value of $359,368.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 577,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,607,543.76. This trade represents a 0.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total value of $1,308,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,300,550.91. This trade represents a 8.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 117,008 shares of company stock worth $14,492,704. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart 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.