Flputnam Investment Management Co. Increases Stock Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Flputnam Investment Management Co. boosted its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 68.5% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 158,313 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 64,331 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $17,931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 28.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,868,000 after buying an additional 21,939 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $800,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.5% during the first quarter. Peterson Wealth Management now owns 50,307 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,416,000 after acquiring an additional 1,715 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 0.9% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 13,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,272,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its stake in Walmart by 1.2% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 91,341 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,931,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total transaction of $2,303,320.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,174,579 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,230,306.77. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through 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 business’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,300,550.91. This represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 54,164 shares of company stock valued at $6,389,402. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Down 9.2%

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $103.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $113.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $121.39. The company has a market capitalization of $826.37 billion, a PE ratio of 36.44, a P/E/G ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 0.61. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $95.42 and a 1-year high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.62 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.68 EPS. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reported fiscal second-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.81, above the $0.74 consensus, while revenue rose 5.9% year over year to $187.94 billion and exceeded estimates. Walmart quarterly earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Growth areas remained strong: global e-commerce increased 23%, advertising revenue rose 38%, and global membership revenue grew 17%. Gross margin also benefited from tariff-refund impacts. Walmart reports second-quarter revenue growth
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its fiscal-year earnings outlook and expects to use approximately $2.9 billion in tariff refunds to support lower prices, potentially strengthening customer traffic and market share. Walmart tariff refunds and prices
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS analyst Michael Lasser remained bullish, citing Walmart’s e-commerce, advertising and membership momentum, while technical coverage noted the stock had entered oversold territory near potential support around $100. Analyst remains bullish on Walmart
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. comparable sales grew 2.6%, well below expectations near 3.5%–3.7% and the weakest growth in more than six years. Higher gas and other living costs appear to be causing consumers to make trade-offs, raising concerns about the broader U.S. consumer. Reuters report on Walmart sales miss
• Negative Sentiment: Fiscal third-quarter EPS guidance of $0.62–$0.64 and revenue guidance of $183.1–$184.5 billion fell short of consensus estimates of $0.68 and $188.2 billion, respectively. The timing of Flipkart’s major promotional event is also expected to create a sales headwind. Walmart guidance disappoints investors
• Negative Sentiment: Gordon Haskett downgraded Walmart from “buy” to “accumulate.” The stock’s premium valuation amplified the market’s reaction, while rising bond yields pressured the broader equity market. U.S. stocks slide as Walmart disappoints

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho set a $130.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, July 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $142.00 target price on shares of Walmart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 target price (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Walmart from $147.00 to $146.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.50.

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.