Harfst & Associates Inc. Grows Holdings in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Harfst & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 107.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,413 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,518 shares during the period. Harfst & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,800,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WMT. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in Walmart by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 5,092 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $498,000 after buying an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Carlson Capital L.P. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at about $733,000. GM Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 214.1% during the 2nd quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 31,425 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,073,000 after purchasing an additional 21,421 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 5.7% in the second quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 125,755 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $12,296,000 after buying an additional 6,747 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 28.8% in the second quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 284,538 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $27,677,000 after buying an additional 63,601 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $109.21 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $79.81 and a twelve month high of $109.59. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $103.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $100.09. The firm has a market cap of $870.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.83 and a beta of 0.67.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The retailer reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 3.08%.The company had revenue of $179.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $175.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.58 EPS. The firm’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. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Bank of America boosted their target price on Walmart from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $125.00 price target (up from $115.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, November 21st. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $120.00 target price (up previously from $110.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Thirty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $118.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.18, for a total value of $222,596.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 619,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,682,831.24. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.65, for a total value of $746,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 136,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,535,221.85. This represents a 4.89% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 138,597 shares of company stock worth $14,499,943. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.