Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Has $343.57 Million Stock Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its Walmart stake by 7.9% to 3,004,147 shares, valued at about $343.57 million at the end of the quarter.
• Walmart beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $0.74 (vs. $0.73) and revenue of $190.66B (vs. $188.37B), and provided FY 2027 EPS guidance of 2.75–2.85.
• The stock has a market cap of roughly $962.4 billion, a P/E of 44.06, a dividend yield of 0.8%, and a consensus analyst rating of Moderate Buy with a $135.76 price target.

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT - Free Report) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,004,147 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 218,748 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $343,568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Walmart by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 435,652,710 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $44,898,368,000 after buying an additional 3,835,200 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Walmart by 1.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $19,046,104,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,364 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Walmart during the second quarter valued at about $5,367,770,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 1.6% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,298,623 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,153,176,000 after purchasing an additional 634,211 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.6% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 31,973,329 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,126,775,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098,342 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WMT opened at $120.72 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The business's fifty day moving average price is $124.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $113.09. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.81 and a fifty-two week high of $134.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $962.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 0.66.

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. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $188.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a $0.2475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 27th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 target price on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $147.00 target price (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $135.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.27, for a total value of $2,445,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 506,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,962,034.28. This trade represents a 3.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total transaction of $1,574,868.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 727,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $87,251,328.45. This represents a 1.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 274,278 shares of company stock valued at $33,605,809 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

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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