10,359 Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Acquired by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Verdence Capital Advisors increased its Walmart stake by 26.9% in the third quarter, purchasing 10,359 shares and bringing its holdings to 48,803 shares valued at approximately $5.07 million.
• Walmart exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.81 EPS versus a $0.74 consensus and $187.94 billion in revenue, up 5.9% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive outlook, with a consensus “Buy” rating and average price target of $132.41, though Walmart’s elevated valuation and recent insider selling remain notable risks.

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 26.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,803 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 10,359 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $5,072,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aegis Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Walmart by 2.5% during the third quarter. Aegis Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,891 shares of the retailer's stock worth $716,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Leslie Global Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Leslie Global Wealth LLC now owns 3,452 shares of the retailer's stock worth $359,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 89,202 shares of the retailer's stock worth $9,270,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC now owns 78,647 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,173,000 after buying an additional 5,761 shares during the period. Finally, Noesis Capital Mangement Corp grew its holdings in Walmart by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Noesis Capital Mangement Corp now owns 3,674 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $382,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $120.29 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $954.35 billion, a PE ratio of 43.43, a P/E/G ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The business has a 50-day moving average of $109.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $118.25. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $98.88 and a 12 month high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. Walmart's revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Holiday event could support near-term sales. Walmart announced three major holiday shopping events, giving investors a potential catalyst for stronger seasonal traffic, e-commerce activity and market-share gains. The upbeat outlook is particularly important because WMT’s valuation already reflects substantial future growth. Walmart Just Announced Its Triple Holiday Event
• Positive Sentiment: AI and e-commerce initiatives could expand digital growth. Walmart is joining Meta’s AI-commerce push and is developing agent-based shopping tools intended to improve product discovery, personalization and customer engagement. Analysts also see continued e-commerce momentum as a driver of longer-term growth. Can Walmart’s AI Strategy Unlock the Next Phase of Digital Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: New services broaden Walmart’s ecosystem. Lower-cost delivery partnerships with Subway, Dunkin’ and Papa John’s, expanded Better Care Services, and an exclusive Affirm buy-now-pay-later arrangement at Sam’s Club could increase customer convenience, engagement and recurring transaction opportunities ahead of the holidays. Walmart Makes Sam’s Club Its Exclusive Buy Now Pay Later Checkout Option
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading data offers limited directional information. A report lists short interest at zero shares and a zero-day days-to-cover ratio, which may indicate a data-quality issue rather than a meaningful change in investor positioning. Walmart also lined up U.S. and Canadian debt issuance, potentially supporting funding needs but increasing leverage.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and investor selling are key risks. WMT’s reported P/E near 42 and PEG ratio above 4 leave limited room for execution disappointments. Michael Burry said he may sell, reduce or donate long-held positions whose valuations appear stretched, potentially adding sentiment pressure. Michael Burry Eyes the Exit on Walmart

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on WMT. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Walmart to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and issued a $132.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, September 10th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to an "accumulate" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $132.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.66, for a total transaction of $1,399,912.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 647,912 shares in the company, valued at $69,106,293.92. This represents a 1.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, 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 3,990 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.41, for a total transaction of $416,595.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 618,359 shares in the company, valued at $64,562,863.19. The trade was a 0.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 102,244 shares of company stock worth $11,112,044. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

About Walmart

Walmart Inc NASDAQ: WMT operates a global retail business through a network of supercenters, supermarkets, discount stores, neighborhood markets, warehouse clubs and e-commerce platforms. Its stores and websites sell a broad assortment of merchandise, including groceries, consumables, health and wellness products, apparel, electronics, home goods, toys and other general merchandise.

The company organizes its operations into Walmart U.S., Walmart International and Sam's Club U.S. Walmart U.S.

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