Milford Funds Ltd. Invests $22.20 Million in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Milford Funds Ltd. initiated a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter, buying 199,263 shares valued at about $22.2 million.
• Walmart reported quarterly EPS of $0.66, matching analyst expectations, while revenue of $177.75 billion topped estimates and rose 7.4% year over year.
• Insider selling continued, with CEO John R. Furner and EVP Latriece Watkins both selling shares; meanwhile, analysts remain mostly positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $138.85.

Milford Funds Ltd. bought a new position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 199,263 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $22,200,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Renaissance Group LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Group LLC now owns 9,636 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Calton & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Calton & Associates Inc. now owns 27,220 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,033,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Advocacy Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Advocacy Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,392 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,561 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Capstone Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Capstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,955 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $552,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Up 0.4%

WMT stock opened at $121.04 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. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $93.62 and a 52-week high of $135.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $125.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $963.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.59.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.61 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.08, for a total transaction of $1,628,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 661,037 shares in the company, valued at $82,021,470.96. This represents a 1.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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 company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total transaction of $1,308,670.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 120,203 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,300,550.91. This trade represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 128,986 shares of company stock valued at $15,927,908. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday. UBS Group set a $141.00 price target on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $137.00 price target (down from $140.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $138.85.

Walmart Company 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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