TradeLink Capital LLC Acquires New Shares in Walmart Inc. $WMT

TradeLink Capital LLC bought a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 17,750 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,978,000. Walmart accounts for approximately 15.8% of TradeLink Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its biggest position.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new position in Walmart in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Walmart

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley revisited Walmart’s stock ahead of earnings, a sign that major analysts are still actively monitoring the name and may update their outlook based on the upcoming report. Morgan Stanley revisits Walmart stock price target pre-earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Walmart’s recent long-term stock performance remains strong, with shares up sharply over the past year, which can support investor confidence despite short-term volatility. Is It Too Late To Consider Walmart (WMT) After Its Strong 1 Year Share Price Run?
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart’s stock was identified as falling while the broader market gained, reflecting sector rotation and profit-taking rather than a company-specific shock. Walmart (WMT) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: Here’s Why
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful borrowing activity, so this does not currently point to a major bearish trading setup in the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst commentary highlighted pressure on Walmart’s margins as grocery and health categories grow, suggesting profitability may remain under scrutiny even as sales trends hold up. Walmart’s Category Mix Pressures Margins: More Pain Ahead?
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart is preparing for California’s new $18 minimum wage rules, which could add labor cost pressure in a key market and weigh on margins. Walmart braces for new $18 California law — it’s slightly different for every city
• Negative Sentiment: Target’s new push to win back families, starting in the baby aisle, adds competitive pressure in a category where Walmart competes for budget-conscious shoppers. Target is trying to win back busy families from Walmart, starting with the baby aisle

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on WMT. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 18th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $138.33.

Walmart Trading Down 2.2%

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $127.59 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $126.07 and its 200-day moving average is $118.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.89 and a 12 month high of $134.69. The firm has a market cap of $1.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.57, a P/E/G ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.65.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business 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. Equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a $0.2475 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,335 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.63, for a total value of $166,381.05. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 636,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,369,743.09. The trade was a 0.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.72, for a total value of $361,688.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 596,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,334,117.76. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 167,195 shares of company stock valued at $20,975,804 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.