LS Investment Advisors LLC Sells 7,837 Shares of Walmart Inc. $WMT

LS Investment Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 4.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 154,048 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,837 shares during the period. Walmart makes up approximately 2.2% of LS Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. LS Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $15,876,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Motco raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.4% in the third quarter. Motco now owns 146,457 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $15,094,000 after acquiring an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. River Street Advisors LLC grew its position in Walmart by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 11,280 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,163,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Spreng Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Spreng Capital Management Inc. now owns 18,311 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,887,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Walmart by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 155,630 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $16,039,000 after purchasing an additional 10,877 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crown Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 46.3% in the third quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC now owns 9,919 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,022,000 after purchasing an additional 3,141 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. UBS Group set a $130.00 price target on Walmart in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $129.00 target price for the company. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, December 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $123.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Thirty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.28.

Walmart Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ WMT opened at $112.71 on Tuesday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $79.81 and a 1 year high of $117.45. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $108.82 and its 200-day moving average is $103.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $898.32 billion, a PE ratio of 39.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 0.66.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 3.26% and a return on equity of 21.31%. The business had revenue of $179.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $175.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.58 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Walmart has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.630 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.63, for a total value of $406,520.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,040,455 shares in the company, valued at $105,741,441.65. This trade represents a 0.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 7,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.65, for a total value of $746,550.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 136,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,535,221.85. This trade represents a 4.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 125,628 shares of company stock worth $13,690,065. Company insiders own 0.10% 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.