Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 27,189 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 657,666 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 27,189 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $73,276,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 57.4% during the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clayton Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 193.0% during the fourth quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Latriece Watkins sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.97, for a total value of $1,308,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,300,550.91. This trade represents a 8.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,174,579 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,230,306.77. The trade was a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 128,986 shares of company stock valued at $15,927,908. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. UBS Group set a $141.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price objective on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. One equities 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.85.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT opened at $121.04 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $125.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.66. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $93.62 and a one year high of $135.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $963.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 0.59. 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, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. The business’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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 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.