Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC Buys 115,525 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 76.3% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 266,864 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 115,525 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises approximately 0.3% of Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $30,225,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. boosted its position in Walmart by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. now owns 52,800 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,990,000 after buying an additional 5,086 shares during the period. Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the second quarter worth approximately $8,762,000. Langley Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the second quarter worth approximately $2,188,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 13.4% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,850,595 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $323,157,000 after acquiring an additional 335,786 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TFR Capital LLC. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 4.1% during the second quarter. TFR Capital LLC. now owns 9,344 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,058,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.19, for a total value of $342,751.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 574,953 shares in the company, valued at $67,953,695.07. The trade was a 0.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed 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, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $14,300,550.91. The trade was a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 54,164 shares of company stock valued at $6,389,402 in the last 90 days. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. Weiss Ratings cut Walmart from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $142.00 price target on Walmart and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (down from $137.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective (up from $150.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.50.

Walmart News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart enters the report with a strong earnings track record, having exceeded revenue expectations for 25 consecutive quarters. Analysts also see potential for another earnings beat, supported by e-commerce momentum and a growing contribution from Walmart Connect advertising. Walmart Q2 Preview
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s grocery leadership, expanding online business and higher-margin retail-media operations remain important long-term strengths. Advertising growth could help offset the cost of competitive pricing and faster delivery. DA Davidson also reiterated a Buy rating. Retail stagnates, ad dollars help Walmart stay the course
• Neutral Sentiment: Options traders expect a significant post-earnings move, highlighting elevated volatility and the possibility that results or guidance could materially change the stock’s near-term direction. Barchart data ahead of Walmart earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Thousands of price reductions may support customer traffic but could slow sales growth and pressure profit margins. Same-store sales momentum has moderated, increasing investor dependence on advertising and other higher-margin businesses. Walmart sales growth expected to slow
• Negative Sentiment: Several previews characterize WMT as expensive ahead of earnings, with a price-to-earnings ratio near 40 and a cautious outlook already weighing on sentiment. Investors may require a clear earnings or guidance upside to justify the valuation. Walmart valuation concern ahead of Q2 earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart’s grocery advantage faces a margin test as shoppers increasingly purchase additional goods from Amazon, while elevated costs and cautious consumers could limit profitability. Walmart grocery margin test

Walmart Stock Down 0.8%

Walmart stock opened at $114.30 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $114.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $121.49. The company has a market cap of $909.61 billion, a PE ratio of 40.11, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 0.61. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $95.42 and a fifty-two week high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. The firm 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.61 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 EPS for the current year.

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.