Walmart Inc. $WMT Stake Boosted by AlphaQuest LLC

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC increased its stake in Walmart Inc. by 70.3% to a total of 7,467 shares, valued at approximately $656,000.
• Walmart's recent quarterly earnings fell short of expectations, reporting $0.68 EPS compared to an estimated $0.74, with revenues of $169.34 billion.
• The company has announced a dividend of $0.235 per share to be paid on September 2nd, with a current dividend payout ratio of 35.34%.

AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 70.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,467 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 3,083 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $656,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Whelan Financial grew its position in shares of Walmart by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 0.4% in the first quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 25,915 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,275,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Scott & Selber Inc. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 3.7% in the first quarter. Scott & Selber Inc. now owns 2,920 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 1.4% in the first quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,794 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $684,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lauterbach Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 1.8% in the first quarter. Lauterbach Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,885 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of WMT opened at $96.18 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $767.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.16, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $98.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.57 and a 12 month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 21st. The retailer reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $169.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.02 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 3.08%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. Walmart has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.600 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.620 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a dividend yield of 90.0%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Walmart from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Walmart from $130.00 to $127.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Walmart from $111.00 to $109.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.07.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.30, for a total transaction of $216,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 626,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $61,547,399.40. This trade represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,655 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.38, for a total transaction of $166,128.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 647,578 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,003,879.64. The trade was a 0.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 101,966 shares of company stock valued at $9,858,673. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Walmart Company Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.

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