Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Acquired by Eastern Bank

Key Points

• Eastern Bank increased its Walmart stake by 1.8% in the second quarter, adding 16,256 shares to own 896,633 shares valued at approximately $101.6 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on Walmart, with one Strong Buy, 31 Buy and four Hold ratings; the stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $138.56.
• Walmart reported quarterly revenue of $177.75 billion, up 7.4% year over year, while earnings of $0.66 per share matched analyst estimates. Insiders have sold 67,729 shares worth about $8.1 million over the past 90 days.

Eastern Bank grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 896,633 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 16,256 shares during the period. Walmart comprises about 1.6% of Eastern Bank's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Eastern Bank's holdings in Walmart were worth $101,553,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $49,015,626,000 after acquiring an additional 4,304,436 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Walmart by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $19,046,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242,364 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $11,426,753,000 after purchasing an additional 6,517,394 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,458,529,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,526,238,000 after buying an additional 328,229 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WMT. Guggenheim upped their price target on Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Walmart from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $155.00 target price (up from $150.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $137.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $138.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.19, for a total value of $342,751.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 574,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $67,953,695.07. This trade represents a 0.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total value of $1,435,203.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 125,067 shares in the company, valued at $14,985,527.94. This represents a 8.74% 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 67,729 shares of company stock worth $8,124,931. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT opened at $110.71 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $95.42 and a 12-month high of $135.15. The business has a 50 day moving average of $114.98 and a 200-day moving average of $121.89. The stock has a market cap of $881.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.85, a PEG ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 0.61.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The business had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 EPS. The firm's 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. On average, equities research analysts expect 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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