Pacific Excel Wealth Advisors Inc. Takes Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Pacific Excel Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 11,747 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,330,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $49,015,626,000 after buying an additional 4,304,436 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Walmart by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $19,046,104,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,364 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $11,426,753,000 after purchasing an additional 6,517,394 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $6,458,529,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,526,238,000 after purchasing an additional 328,229 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $142.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $137.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Mizuho set a $130.00 price target on Walmart in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised shares of Walmart from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.56.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the business’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 transaction, the director directly owned 4,174,579 shares in the company, valued at $495,230,306.77. The trade was a 0.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 3,710 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.10, for a total value of $419,601.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 626,299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $70,834,416.90. This trade represents a 0.59% 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 a total of 71,439 shares of company stock valued at $8,544,532 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $111.55 on Wednesday. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $95.42 and a 1-year high of $135.15. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $114.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $887.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

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. The business had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.61 earnings per share. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

More Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Advertising expansion: Walmart completed its acquisition of Vibe.co, a self-service streaming-TV advertising platform. Integrating the company into Walmart Connect should give advertisers more tools to plan, purchase and measure connected-TV campaigns, potentially strengthening Walmart’s higher-margin advertising business. Walmart Finalizes Purchase of TV Ad Platform Vibe.co
• Positive Sentiment: New growth initiatives: Walmart is expanding drone delivery in Florida through Alphabet’s Wing and offering GLP-1 weight-loss prescriptions with nutrition coaching and AI-based support. These initiatives could improve delivery competitiveness and broaden Walmart’s healthcare opportunity, although their near-term financial impact remains uncertain. Walmart Launches Florida Drone Delivery And GLP 1 Weight Loss Prescriptions
• Neutral Sentiment: Long-term case remains intact: Commentators continue to cite Walmart’s scale, e-commerce investments, advertising growth and dividend stability as reasons to hold the stock over the long term. However, these are broad investment views rather than new earnings catalysts. Is Walmart a Good Long-Term Investment?
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrade and valuation concerns: Oppenheimer downgraded Walmart ahead of its upcoming earnings report, arguing that the stock’s “peakish valuation” leaves it vulnerable to a lower re-rating if U.S. comparable-sales growth slows. With Walmart trading at a relatively high earnings multiple, investors may demand strong guidance and continued momentum. Walmart Downgraded Ahead of Earnings

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.