Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Hits Estimates

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.66, FiscalAI reports. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The firm had revenue of $177.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.61 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart updated its FY 2027 guidance to 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance to 0.720-0.740 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Walmart’s conference call:

• Walmart beat Q1 expectations, with constant-currency sales up nearly 6% and e-commerce growing 26%, while management reiterated full-year guidance and said sales growth is tracking toward the upper end of the range.
• Traffic and transaction growth accelerated in both Walmart U.S. and Sam’s Club, supported by everyday low prices, roughly 7,200 rollbacks, and strong general merchandise performance, especially fashion and beauty.
• Higher-margin businesses are scaling quickly: advertising grew more than 30% enterprise-wide, membership fee revenue rose 17%, and marketplace sales in the U.S. grew nearly 50%, helping improve the company’s profit mix.
• Delivery speed and AI capabilities continue to expand, with more than 60% of U.S. households now reachable in 30 minutes or less and Sparky usage surging, which management says is boosting order values and customer engagement.
• Fuel costs remain a meaningful headwind, reducing Q1 operating income by about $175 million, and management warned that if elevated fuel prices persist, retail price inflation could rise in the second quarter and second half.

Walmart Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of WMT stock opened at $120.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $126.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.03. Walmart has a 1 year low of $93.43 and a 1 year high of $135.15. The company has a market cap of $958.67 billion, a PE ratio of 42.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. HSBC cut Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $122.00 to $131.00 in a research note on Friday, February 20th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Walmart from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Walmart in a report on Friday, February 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Finally, KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.71.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart posted solid first-quarter results, with revenue of $177.8 billion and EPS of $0.66, while e-commerce sales rose 26% and advertising revenue jumped 37%, highlighting continued strength in digital and membership-driven businesses.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remained constructive after earnings: Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating and said Walmart is well positioned to gain share in a price-sensitive environment, while BTIG and BNP Paribas Exane also kept positive ratings despite modestly trimming price targets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart disclosed pre-arranged insider sales by CEO John Furner and EVP Christopher James Nicholas, but both transactions were made under 10b5-1 plans, which typically limits how much investors read into them.
• Neutral Sentiment: News reports also noted leadership changes, including the departure of Sam’s Club COO Tom Ward and U.S. stores EVP Cedric Clark, adding some uncertainty but not appearing to change the company’s near-term operating outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Shares weakened after Walmart issued second-quarter EPS guidance below consensus and reaffirmed full-year targets that also came in below Wall Street expectations, prompting concerns that margin pressure could continue.
• Negative Sentiment: Management said elevated fuel prices are pressuring both consumers and Walmart’s own costs, reinforcing worries that spending could soften and profitability could stay under pressure in the coming quarters.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total transaction of $359,368.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 577,853 shares in the company, valued at $71,607,543.76. This trade represents a 0.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.96, for a total value of $1,600,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 687,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,821,522.52. The trade was a 1.87% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 126,008 shares of company stock worth $15,896,715 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Walmart by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $19,046,104,000 after buying an additional 2,242,364 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 24,990,692 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,575,541,000 after purchasing an additional 93,459 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in Walmart by 20.5% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 23,497,921 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,413,236,000 after acquiring an additional 4,004,277 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Walmart by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,602,359 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,738,321,000 after acquiring an additional 114,154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,373,333 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,378,513,000 after acquiring an additional 710,161 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

About Walmart

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.