Eastern Bank Acquires 16,256 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Eastern Bank raised its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 896,633 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,256 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for approximately 1.6% of Eastern Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Walmart were worth $101,553,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 57.4% during the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 193.0% during the 4th quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sankala Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Down 0.4%

WMT opened at $110.71 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $881.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $114.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $121.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $95.42 and a 12 month high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.66. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The company had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on WMT. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $150.00 target price (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $137.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 11th. Erste Group Bank lowered Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.63, for a total value of $2,303,320.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,174,579 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,230,306.77. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total transaction of $1,308,670.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 120,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,300,550.91. This represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 67,729 shares of company stock valued at $8,124,931. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.