Schroder Investment Management Group Sells 1,602,944 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

Schroder Investment Management Group lessened its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 35.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,889,924 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,602,944 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group’s holdings in Walmart were worth $297,836,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 212.6% during the 3rd quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 322 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total transaction of $1,574,868.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 727,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,251,328.45. This represents a 1.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.83, for a total value of $2,171,291.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,315,333 shares in the company, valued at $482,583,689.39. The trade was a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 279,703 shares of company stock valued at $34,140,843. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $123.80 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market cap of $986.71 billion, a PE ratio of 45.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.66. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $79.81 and a 12-month high of $134.69. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $121.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.06.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.610-0.610 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.2475 per share. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s payout ratio is presently 36.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. CICC Research assumed coverage on Walmart in a research report on Friday, December 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Tigress Financial set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Walmart and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $138.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $135.76.

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.