Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) Stock Price Down 7.3% – Here’s What Happened

Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT)’s share price dropped 7.3% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $120.39 and last traded at $121.34. Approximately 52,527,852 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 101% from the average daily volume of 26,146,713 shares. The stock had previously closed at $130.85.

Walmart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walmart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Walmart posted solid first-quarter results, with revenue of $177.8 billion and EPS of $0.66, while e-commerce sales rose 26% and advertising revenue jumped 37%, highlighting continued strength in digital and membership-driven businesses.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remained constructive after earnings: Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating and said Walmart is well positioned to gain share in a price-sensitive environment, while BTIG and BNP Paribas Exane also kept positive ratings despite modestly trimming price targets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart disclosed pre-arranged insider sales by CEO John Furner and EVP Christopher James Nicholas, but both transactions were made under 10b5-1 plans, which typically limits how much investors read into them.
• Neutral Sentiment: News reports also noted leadership changes, including the departure of Sam’s Club COO Tom Ward and U.S. stores EVP Cedric Clark, adding some uncertainty but not appearing to change the company’s near-term operating outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Shares weakened after Walmart issued second-quarter EPS guidance below consensus and reaffirmed full-year targets that also came in below Wall Street expectations, prompting concerns that margin pressure could continue.
• Negative Sentiment: Management said elevated fuel prices are pressuring both consumers and Walmart’s own costs, reinforcing worries that spending could soften and profitability could stay under pressure in the coming quarters.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Walmart from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 price objective (down from $140.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $137.00 target price (up from $135.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.71.

Walmart Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $958.67 billion, a PE ratio of 42.20, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $126.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $120.03.

Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.25% and a net margin of 3.13%.The business had revenue of $177.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Walmart has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.750-2.850 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.720-0.740 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.79, for a total value of $2,555,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 486,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,203,571.56. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Christopher James Nicholas sold 2,900 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total transaction of $359,368.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 577,853 shares in the company, valued at $71,607,543.76. This represents a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 126,008 shares of company stock valued at $15,896,715 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walmart

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Walmart by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 439,957,146 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $49,015,626,000 after buying an additional 4,304,436 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,805,978 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $19,046,104,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242,364 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,010,709 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $11,426,753,000 after acquiring an additional 6,517,394 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,458,529,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626,852 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,526,238,000 after acquiring an additional 328,229 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% 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.