Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA Makes New $36.89 Million Investment in Walmart Inc. $WMT

Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 357,952 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $36,887,000. Walmart accounts for approximately 2.0% of Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WMT. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc lifted its position in Walmart by 212.6% during the 3rd quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 322 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $145.00 price objective on Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $138.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up from $136.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $134.00 price target (up from $129.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.27, for a total transaction of $2,445,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 506,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,962,034.28. This represents a 3.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.99, for a total value of $1,574,868.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 727,155 shares in the company, valued at $87,251,328.45. This trade represents a 1.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 279,703 shares of company stock valued at $34,140,843. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

NASDAQ:WMT opened at $125.12 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $122.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $111.44. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $79.81 and a 1-year high of $134.69. The firm has a market cap of $997.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.63 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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $190.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $188.37 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 3.07% and a return on equity of 21.44%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. 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 research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be given 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 is 34.31%.

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.