Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Smart Money Group LLC

Smart Money Group LLC cut its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 43.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,972 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,252 shares during the period. Smart Money Group LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $469,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 15,371.4% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,511,225 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $553,545,000 after purchasing an additional 3,488,530 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 46.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,491,137 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $718,271,000 after acquiring an additional 1,416,359 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,873,127 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,698,519,000 after acquiring an additional 1,317,729 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 137,214,807 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $21,944,764,000 after acquiring an additional 751,713 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 161.6% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,157,620 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $182,499,000 after acquiring an additional 715,125 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE WMT traded up $0.86 on Thursday, hitting $59.71. 15,745,604 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,633,684. The company has a market cap of $481.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.34 and a 1-year high of $61.65.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.08% and a net margin of 2.39%. The company had revenue of $173.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $170.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.57 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.2075 per share. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 43.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total value of $1,748,313.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,018,650 shares in the company, valued at $241,239,559.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.26, for a total value of $180,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 524,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,613,179.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total value of $1,748,313.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares in the company, valued at $241,239,559.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 29,016,140 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,868,391. Corporate insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $54.33 to $58.67 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 19th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Stifel Europe raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $56.33 to $58.33 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Tigress Financial raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $63.33 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.75.

Walmart Company 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.