Proficio Capital Partners LLC Invests $10.04 Million in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 88,622 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $10,037,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth $7,455,131,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $6,458,529,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Walmart in the second quarter valued at about $2,905,655,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 188.1% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,663,172 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,199,907,000 after purchasing an additional 7,614,172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in Walmart in the second quarter worth about $796,677,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s fiscal second-quarter results showed continued momentum beyond traditional store sales: revenue reached approximately $187.9 billion, global e-commerce grew 23%, and advertising revenue increased 38%. These higher-growth businesses could support future margins and cash flow. Walmart Growth Engine Hums
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and commentary continue to point to Walmart’s expanding e-commerce, digital advertising, memberships, convenience-led fulfillment, automation and AI initiatives as reasons the recent decline could represent a long-term buying opportunity. Walmart’s scale and value-focused pricing remain important competitive advantages. Walmart Continues to Grow Beyond Retail
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart settled a U.S. Justice Department lawsuit alleging that its pharmacies unlawfully contributed to the opioid epidemic. Resolving the case removes an overhang and reduces legal uncertainty, although the financial terms and any broader implications remain important for investors. Walmart Settles U.S. Opioid Lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights a potentially tougher consumer environment. Walmart’s comparable sales growth was 3.4% excluding pharmacy-related items, while middle-income shoppers appear increasingly focused on necessities and limiting discretionary purchases. Walmart and Home Depot Results
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also questioning whether Walmart’s valuation adequately reflects its strong performance. A high earnings multiple, slower core sales growth and the stock’s position below its moving averages have amplified the impact of the recent selloff. Walmart Selloff Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Executive Vice President Daniel Danker sold 50,644 shares worth approximately $5.3 million. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan to cover taxes on vested equity awards, making it a weaker bearish signal than discretionary insider selling. Walmart Insider Trading Filing

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $103.09 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $95.79 and a twelve month high of $135.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $820.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.22, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $111.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $120.39.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The retailer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. Walmart had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 21.83%. The company had revenue of $187.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.68 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Walmart news, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.34, for a total transaction of $308,386.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 569,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $60,523,730.02. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP David W. Guggina sold 11,978 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 125,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,985,527.94. This represents a 8.74% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 77,292 shares of company stock worth $8,421,143 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of several research reports. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $128.00 price objective (down from $137.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 target price (up from $150.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 29th. BNP Paribas Exane reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 target price (down from $146.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.88.

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.