Bollard Group LLC Has $31.71 Million Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Bollard Group LLC reduced its Walmart stake by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, but still held 284,657 shares valued at about $31.71 million, making Walmart its 17th largest holding.
• Wall Street remains broadly upbeat on Walmart, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $138.85 across analysts.
• Walmart’s latest earnings beat revenue expectations, posting $177.75 billion in quarterly sales and matching EPS estimates at $0.66; the stock was trading around $121.04 after a modest 0.4% rise.

Bollard Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 284,657 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 22,727 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for 0.8% of Bollard Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Bollard Group LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $31,714,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Clayton Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 193.0% in the fourth quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 293 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WMT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price objective on Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $150.00 price objective on Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Truist Financial set a $140.00 price objective on Walmart in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, UBS Group set a $141.00 price objective on Walmart and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $138.85.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total value of $359,368.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 577,853 shares of the company's stock, valued at $71,607,543.76. This trade represents a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total value of $2,303,320.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,174,579 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $495,230,306.77. This trade represents a 0.46% 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 sold 128,986 shares of company stock valued at $15,927,908 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of WMT stock opened at $121.04 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $963.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 0.59. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $93.62 and a one year high of $135.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $125.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.66. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 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 return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.Walmart's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $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. Analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share 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.

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