Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Makes New Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 354,932 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $40,200,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Kelman Lazarov Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,414,000. Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new stake in Walmart in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. one8zero8 LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth $1,023,000. Kentucky Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth $5,347,000. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the second quarter worth $181,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.34, for a total transaction of $308,386.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 569,153 shares in the company, valued at $60,523,730.02. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.82, for a total value of $1,435,203.96. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 125,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,985,527.94. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 57,064 shares of company stock worth $6,697,788. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. DA Davidson set a $132.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Walmart to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Walmart from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Walmart from $137.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.88.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart reported adjusted earnings of $0.81 per share and revenue of $187.94 billion, beating consensus estimates of $0.74 and $186.62 billion, respectively. Revenue increased 5.9% year over year. Walmart earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Growth businesses remain strong: global e-commerce sales rose 23%, advertising revenue increased 38%, and global membership revenue grew 17%. These trends support the long-term investment case despite slower core-store growth. Walmart second-quarter highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart plans to use approximately $2.9 billion in tariff refunds to help lower prices, potentially strengthening its value proposition as consumers become more budget-conscious. The rollout of tap-to-pay, including Apple Pay and Google Pay, may also improve checkout convenience. Walmart tap to pay rollout
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts retained bullish ratings—including buy, outperform, and overweight—but lowered price targets after the earnings release. New targets range from $120 to $140, indicating analysts still see meaningful upside but have moderated their expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. comparable sales grew 2.6%, below expectations near 3.5%, marking Walmart’s weakest domestic comparable-sales growth in more than six years. Analysts cited weakness in health and wellness and questioned the trajectory of the core U.S. business.
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter guidance fell short of consensus: Walmart projected adjusted EPS of $0.62–$0.64 versus $0.68 expected and revenue of $183.1–$184.5 billion versus $188.2 billion expected. The timing of Flipkart’s promotional event is also expected to reduce quarterly sales growth by more than 100 basis points.
• Negative Sentiment: The stock’s elevated valuation increases sensitivity to any slowdown, while higher energy costs and consumer trade-offs are raising broader concerns about the health of U.S. retail spending.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $103.70 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $113.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $825.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $95.42 and a 52 week high of $135.15.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $187.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.64 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.68 earnings per share. Walmart has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 0.620-0.640 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.870 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Company 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.