Walmart Inc. $WMT Shares Bought by Castle Hook Partners LP

Castle Hook Partners LP raised its position in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 40.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,003,962 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 573,999 shares during the quarter. Walmart makes up approximately 0.9% of Castle Hook Partners LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Castle Hook Partners LP’s holdings in Walmart were worth $223,261,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Walmart during the third quarter valued at $1,709,000. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its position in Walmart by 42.1% during the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 275,341 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,676,000 after purchasing an additional 81,635 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Walmart by 2.9% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,010,886 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $104,182,000 after purchasing an additional 28,026 shares during the period. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $40,855,000. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners lifted its position in Walmart by 466.6% during the third quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 13,343 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,375,000 after purchasing an additional 10,988 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, March 6th. HSBC downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $122.00 to $131.00 in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Argus upgraded shares of Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.85.

Key Walmart News

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is being highlighted by analysts as one of the best large-cap S&P 500 stocks to buy, reflecting continued confidence in its scale, defensive business model, and long-term earnings power. Walmart (WMT) – Among the 14 Best S&P 500 Stocks to Buy Now According to Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s advertising and retail media revenue is surging as marketplace growth and seller spending increase, supporting a higher-margin growth engine beyond traditional retail sales. Walmart’s Advertising Revenues Soar: Is Retail Media Paying Off?
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart is expanding its delivery offering by adding Subway meals delivery, reinforcing its convenience strategy and broadening customer traffic and online order opportunities. Walmart Inc (WMT) Adds Subway Meals Delivery. Get the Bigger Picture
• Neutral Sentiment: A recent article argues Walmart’s 9.2% pullback may be tied to fuel costs and consumer pressure, but says strong e-commerce, marketplace, and higher-margin growth keep the investment case intact. How to Play Walmart Stock After Its Recent 9.2% Pullback?
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,385 shares in a pre-arranged 10b5-1 transaction, a modest insider sale that can add to near-term investor caution even though it was not an open-market surprise. SEC Form 4 – Daniel J. Bartlett

Walmart Stock Down 2.4%

WMT opened at $118.13 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.09 and a fifty-two week high of $135.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a fifty day moving average of $124.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $940.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.45, a PEG ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 0.59.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. The company had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. 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, research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.16, for a total value of $2,391,274.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,213,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $518,923,082.96. The trade was a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.84, for a total transaction of $1,638,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 674,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $84,162,384.08. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 117,246 shares of company stock valued at $14,493,147 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.09% 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.