Groupe la Francaise Purchases 165,210 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Groupe la Francaise increased its holdings in Walmart Inc. by 27.2%, purchasing an additional 165,210 shares, bringing its total to 773,083 shares valued at approximately $66.17 million.
• Walmart's recent quarterly earnings reported a miss, with earnings per share of $0.68 compared to analyst expectations of $0.74, and revenue of $169.34 billion versus $174.02 billion.
• The company announced a dividend of $0.235 per share, which will be paid on September 2nd, signifying a dividend yield of 90.0%.

Groupe la Francaise lifted its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 27.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 773,083 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 165,210 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises approximately 1.4% of Groupe la Francaise's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Groupe la Francaise's holdings in Walmart were worth $66,166,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Full Sail Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Full Sail Capital LLC now owns 8,702 shares of the retailer's stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the period. Leslie Global Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Leslie Global Wealth LLC now owns 3,154 shares of the retailer's stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the period. Monument Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 94.2% in the first quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 55,004 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,829,000 after purchasing an additional 26,685 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 11.8% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,959,752 shares of the retailer's stock worth $698,787,000 after purchasing an additional 838,689 shares during the period. Finally, Milestone Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 156.7% in the first quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC now owns 54,659 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,799,000 after purchasing an additional 33,370 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $96.8190 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $97.99 and a 200-day moving average of $95.63. The firm has a market cap of $772.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40, a P/E/G ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.01 and a 1-year high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The retailer reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $169.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $174.02 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 3.08%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.67 earnings per share. Walmart has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.600 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.620 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 90.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.34%.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.14, for a total transaction of $1,248,712.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 932,313 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,700,258.82. This represents a 1.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,655 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.38, for a total transaction of $166,128.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 647,578 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,003,879.64. This represents a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 88,841 shares of company stock valued at $8,565,205 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Mizuho reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Walmart from $101.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $110.00 target price (up previously from $108.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price target (up from $112.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.07.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.

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