Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Sold by Stack Financial Management Inc

Key Points

• Stack Financial Management Inc. trimmed its Walmart stake by 2.7% in Q4, selling 28,494 shares and now holding 1,018,502 shares worth $113.47 million, which represents 8.7% of its portfolio and is its largest position.
• Notable insider selling: EVP Christopher J. Nicholas sold 34,082 shares at about $122 and EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares at $127.79, with insiders disposing of 167,195 shares (~$20.98M) in the last quarter and now owning 0.10% of the company.
• Analysts and results: Analysts are largely bullish (average target $137.79; multiple Buy/Strong Buy ratings), and Walmart slightly beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates while guiding FY2027 EPS to $2.75–$2.85.

Stack Financial Management Inc lowered its stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,018,502 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 28,494 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 8.7% of Stack Financial Management Inc's portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Stack Financial Management Inc's holdings in Walmart were worth $113,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WMT. Collier Financial acquired a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus upgraded shares of Walmart to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 27th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $150.00 price objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $137.79.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total value of $4,158,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,082,852. This represents a 6.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total transaction of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,203,571.56. This trade represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 167,195 shares of company stock worth $20,975,804 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $130.33 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.04 trillion, a PE ratio of 47.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 0.65. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $125.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $117.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.79. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $134.69.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. Walmart's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. Equities analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a $0.2475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is 36.13%.

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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