Compass Capital Management Inc. Lowers Position in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Compass Capital Management Inc. cut its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 466,507 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 25,681 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for about 3.2% of Compass Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $52,837,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Sankala Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $14,300,550.91. This represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $2,303,320.08. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,174,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,230,306.77. This trade represents a 0.46% 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,164 shares of company stock valued at $6,389,402. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reported fiscal second-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.81, above the $0.74 consensus, while revenue rose 5.9% year over year to $187.94 billion and exceeded estimates. Walmart quarterly earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Growth areas remained strong: global e-commerce increased 23%, advertising revenue rose 38%, and global membership revenue grew 17%. Gross margin also benefited from tariff-refund impacts. Walmart reports second-quarter revenue growth
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its fiscal-year earnings outlook and expects to use approximately $2.9 billion in tariff refunds to support lower prices, potentially strengthening customer traffic and market share. Walmart tariff refunds and prices
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS analyst Michael Lasser remained bullish, citing Walmart’s e-commerce, advertising and membership momentum, while technical coverage noted the stock had entered oversold territory near potential support around $100. Analyst remains bullish on Walmart
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. comparable sales grew 2.6%, well below expectations near 3.5%–3.7% and the weakest growth in more than six years. Higher gas and other living costs appear to be causing consumers to make trade-offs, raising concerns about the broader U.S. consumer. Reuters report on Walmart sales miss
• Negative Sentiment: Fiscal third-quarter EPS guidance of $0.62–$0.64 and revenue guidance of $183.1–$184.5 billion fell short of consensus estimates of $0.68 and $188.2 billion, respectively. The timing of Flipkart’s major promotional event is also expected to create a sales headwind. Walmart guidance disappoints investors
• Negative Sentiment: Gordon Haskett downgraded Walmart from “buy” to “accumulate.” The stock’s premium valuation amplified the market’s reaction, while rising bond yields pressured the broader equity market. U.S. stocks slide as Walmart disappoints

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $103.84 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $826.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.44, a PEG ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $113.69 and its 200 day moving average is $121.39. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $95.42 and a 1 year high of $135.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.62 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 21.25%. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.68 EPS. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the topic of several research reports. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Gordon Haskett lowered shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price (up from $145.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.50.

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.