Convergence Investment Partners LLC Purchases 8,733 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Convergence Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 19.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,800 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,733 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 1.1% of Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $6,686,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $49,015,626,000 after buying an additional 4,304,436 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Walmart by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $19,046,104,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,364 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $11,426,753,000 after acquiring an additional 6,517,394 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $6,458,529,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Walmart by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,526,238,000 after purchasing an additional 328,229 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT stock opened at $112.20 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $892.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.37, a PEG ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 0.60. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $118.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.11. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $95.10 and a one year 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.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total transaction of $2,303,320.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,174,579 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,230,306.77. This represents a 0.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total value of $1,308,670.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,300,550.91. The trade was a 8.38% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 87,145 shares of company stock valued at $10,691,920 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on WMT shares. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Walmart from $147.00 to $146.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 target price (up from $150.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.85.

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.