Jennison Associates LLC Cuts Stake in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Jennison Associates LLC cut its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 7.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,541,042 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,410,137 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for approximately 1.3% of Jennison Associates LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $2,099,958,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Sankala Group LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new stake in Walmart in the first quarter worth about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Truist Financial set a $140.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.56.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 574,953 shares in the company, valued at $67,953,695.07. This represents a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing 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 the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total value of $1,435,203.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 125,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,985,527.94. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 70,189 shares of company stock worth $8,377,320 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s e-commerce business continues to be viewed as a significant growth engine, with its digital capabilities increasingly resembling a broader commerce platform rather than a traditional big-box retailer. Walmart’s E-Commerce Engine Roars
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies said potential tariff refunds could support Walmart’s price-leadership strategy. Reinvesting the money in lower prices could widen its price gap with competitors and help drive market-share gains, particularly in consumables. Walmart set for in-line Q2
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “Outperform” rating, providing some support for the long-term investment case despite near-term sales concerns. RBC Reaffirms Outperform Rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart is expected to deliver largely in-line second-quarter results. The key catalysts are management’s second-half outlook, tariff-refund treatment and the potential effect on pricing and margins. Walmart Q2 earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: The company will release results before the market opens on August 20 and host a conference call with CEO John Furner and CFO John David Rainey. Walmart to Host Second Quarter Earnings Conference Call
• Negative Sentiment: Deutsche Bank expects Walmart to miss second-quarter comparable-sales estimates, while high gasoline prices are pressuring household budgets and raising the retailer’s operating costs. Walmart Seen Missing Comparable Sales Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts have cited elevated fuel costs, rising expenses and valuation concerns as reasons for Walmart’s recent weakness, despite solid revenue growth and e-commerce momentum. Walmart Stock Slides About 12% in 3 Months
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon’s AI-powered Alexa shopping tools could intensify competition for grocery-list creation and digital shopping relationships, areas strategically important to Walmart’s e-commerce growth. Amazon’s Alexa Shopping Strategy

Walmart Stock Down 0.4%

WMT stock opened at $115.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $917.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 0.61. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $95.42 and a 12 month high of $135.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $114.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.52. 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 issued its 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 firm had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last 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. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current year.

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.