Walmart Inc. $WMT Holdings Decreased by Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich

Key Points

• Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich reduced its Walmart stake by 1.5% in the third quarter, selling 55,229 shares and retaining 3.61 million shares valued at approximately $376.9 million.
• Other institutional investors were generally buyers, including Nippon Life Global Investors Americas, which increased its Walmart holdings by more than 1,165%. Institutional investors collectively own 26.76% of Walmart’s outstanding shares.
• Walmart reported quarterly revenue of $187.94 billion and EPS of $0.81, exceeding analyst expectations. Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $132.41, though the stock’s elevated valuation and moderating comparable-sales growth could limit upside.

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich trimmed its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 1.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,610,038 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 55,229 shares during the quarter. Walmart makes up 1.0% of Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich's holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich's holdings in Walmart were worth $376,935,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Virtue Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 1.1% during the third quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 8,881 shares of the retailer's stock worth $923,000 after buying an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,165.4% in the 3rd quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. now owns 145,140 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $15,083,000 after acquiring an additional 133,670 shares during the last quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 49.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 1,973 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $205,000 after buying an additional 653 shares during the last quarter. Verus Financial Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Walmart by 19.0% in the 3rd quarter. Verus Financial Partners Inc. now owns 3,846 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $400,000 after buying an additional 613 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Columbia Bank increased its holdings in Walmart by 11.8% in the third quarter. Columbia Bank now owns 13,484 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,401,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Energy investment expands Walmart’s customer offerings: Walmart is making a strategic investment in Base Power and will offer the company’s home battery systems to Walmart customers and Sam’s Club members beginning in November. The systems are designed to reduce energy costs and provide backup power, creating a potential new customer benefit while expanding Walmart’s ecosystem beyond traditional retail. Walmart and Base Power announce strategic agreement
• Positive Sentiment: Major automation agreement with Symbotic: Walmart expanded its commercial relationship with warehouse-automation provider Symbotic in a deal valued at approximately $6 billion. Greater automation could improve fulfillment capacity, labor efficiency and inventory management, although the investment also carries execution and capital-spending risks. Symbotic stock jumps on Walmart automation deal
• Positive Sentiment: Strong fundamentals continue to support the stock: Walmart’s latest quarterly results exceeded consensus estimates for both earnings and revenue, with revenue rising year over year. Analysts and market commentary continue to highlight earnings growth and price strength as reasons to remain constructive on WMT. Earnings growth and price strength make Walmart a stock to watch
• Neutral Sentiment: Healthcare expansion offers a longer-term growth avenue: Walmart has broadened its Better Care Services platform into a healthcare marketplace connecting customers with third-party providers. The initiative could increase customer engagement, but its financial contribution is not yet clear. Walmart launched a healthcare services marketplace
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive and regulatory concerns remain: DoorDash’s proposed $17 billion acquisition of Instacart is intended partly to strengthen competition with Walmart and Amazon in local commerce and grocery delivery. Separately, the FTC is seeking information from Walmart about the use of personal data in personalized pricing, creating potential compliance and reputational risks. FTC orders Walmart and others to share pricing data information
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation comparisons could limit upside: Walmart trades at a substantially higher earnings multiple than Target, while commentary suggests Walmart’s comparable-sales growth may be moderating. That premium leaves the stock more exposed if growth expectations weaken. Target trades at a fraction of Walmart’s valuation

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $123.51 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $979.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.59, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.53. The business's 50-day moving average price is $110.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $118.40. 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 posted its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. The business's revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.68 EPS. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on WMT. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Walmart from $147.00 to $132.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 21st. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Walmart from $137.00 to $131.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Gordon Haskett lowered shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to an "accumulate" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $132.41.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Christopher Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.60, for a total value of $349,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 563,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,940,371.80. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Daniel Danker sold 50,644 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.35, for a total transaction of $5,335,345.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 201,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,246,145.20. The trade was a 20.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 98,534 shares of company stock valued at $10,692,443. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Walmart Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WMT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.