Brookstone Capital Management Boosts Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) by 9.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 296,626 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,191 shares during the quarter. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Walmart were worth $33,047,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of WMT. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Walmart by 188.1% during 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. Amundi raised its stake in Walmart by 20.5% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 23,497,921 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,413,236,000 after purchasing an additional 4,004,277 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 435,652,710 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $44,898,368,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835,200 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $294,621,000. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at $273,784,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, March 6th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Walmart in a report on Friday, February 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $150.00 price target on Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $147.00 price target (up from $120.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, CEO John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.96, for a total transaction of $1,600,725.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 687,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $83,821,522.52. The trade was a 1.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 34,082 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total value of $4,158,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,082,852. This represents a 6.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 274,278 shares of company stock worth $33,825,793. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $124.25 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $124.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $113.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $79.81 and a twelve month high of $134.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $990.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.35, a PEG ratio of 4.60 and a beta of 0.66.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The retailer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.44% and a net margin of 3.07%.The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.66 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. 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, equities research 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a $0.2475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $0.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.13%.

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.