WestEnd Advisors LLC Has $42.05 Million Stake in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Key Points

• WestEnd Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Walmart Inc. by 15.9%, owning 430,046 shares valued at $42.05 million, making it the firm's 26th largest holding.
• Walmart's Q2 earnings report indicated a miss on EPS estimates at $0.68, lower than the expected $0.74, with revenues of $169.34 billion against an estimate of $174.02 billion.
• Analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Walmart, with an average price target of $112.38, indicating optimism despite recent selling activity by insiders.

WestEnd Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 15.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 430,046 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 81,008 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 1.0% of WestEnd Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. WestEnd Advisors LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $42,050,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Operose Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 319.7% in the first quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 267.8% in the second quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 320 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 98.2% in the first quarter. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. now owns 337 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its position in shares of Walmart by 432.4% in the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 362 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 55.3% in the second quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 323 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE:WMT opened at $102.90 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $79.37 and a 1 year high of $106.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $101.08 and a 200-day moving average of $96.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $820.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.67.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $106.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $117.00 price target on Walmart and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. 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, August 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $118.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Thirty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $112.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,610 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.71, for a total value of $166,973.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 645,968 shares of the company's stock, valued at $66,993,341.28. This trade represents a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.21, for a total transaction of $2,003,925.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,373,576 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $451,396,778.96. This represents a 0.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 151,232 shares of company stock valued at $15,083,877 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

About Walmart

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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