ProShare Advisors LLC Has $267.49 Million Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors LLC trimmed its Walmart stake by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, but still held 2.4 million shares valued at about $267.5 million at quarter-end.
• Insiders sold shares recently, including EVP Christopher James Nicholas and Director C. Douglas McMillon; over the past 90 days, insiders have sold a total of 167,190 shares worth about $21.0 million.
• Walmart’s stock and fundamentals remain strong, with shares trading near a 52-week high after rising 1.4%, and the company recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates while Wall Street maintains a consensus Buy rating.

ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,400,920 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 173,473 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $267,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Warner Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $291,000. Frisch Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,786 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $758,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,929,072 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $326,328,000 after buying an additional 70,418 shares in the last quarter. L.K. Benson & Company P.C. raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. L.K. Benson & Company P.C. now owns 13,420 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,495,000 after buying an additional 1,195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Auxano Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC now owns 7,292 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $812,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.72, for a total transaction of $361,688.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 596,008 shares of the company's stock, valued at $74,334,117.76. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed 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 stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.21, for a total transaction of $2,566,989.36. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,193,995 shares in the company, valued at approximately $554,488,078.95. This represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. 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 have sold a total of 167,190 shares of company stock worth $20,975,838 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s push into AI and automation could support margins over time by improving fulfillment efficiency, boosting order values, and lowering operating costs. Walmart's AI and Automation Push: Long-Term Cost Advantage?
• Positive Sentiment: Investor focus is turning to Walmart’s upcoming earnings report, with analysts watching key operating metrics beyond revenue and EPS for signs that the business is still executing well. Exploring Analyst Estimates for Walmart (WMT) Q1 Earnings, Beyond Revenue and EPS
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart remains a favored defensive retail name as investors compare it with other consumer staples and grocery operators during a volatile market backdrop. Forget Walmart. The Grocer Beating It on Trust and Margin Trades at a Third of the Multiple
• Neutral Sentiment: Several hedge fund filings showed mixed positioning in Walmart, with some managers adding shares and others trimming, which does not clearly change the near-term outlook. Moore Capital Management Boosts Walmart Stake by 3,454 Shares
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,250 shares in a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 transaction, adding a small insider-sale headline that may slightly pressure sentiment. SEC Form 4 filing
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market attention on geopolitical risk, including the Strait of Hormuz closure, may keep investors cautious and can weigh on sentiment even for defensive stocks like Walmart. NVDA, WMT Report This Week, but News on the Strait Is Key

Walmart Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $133.34 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.06 trillion, a P/E ratio of 48.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $119.46. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $93.43 and a 12-month high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. Research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.2475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. DA Davidson set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. HSBC cut shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $122.00 to $131.00 in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $138.88.

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.

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