Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Acquires 695,225 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 18.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,401,195 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 695,225 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for approximately 1.6% of Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado’s holdings in Walmart were worth $397,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 1,007.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WMT. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 target price (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.58.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $374,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,096,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,518,542.50. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total transaction of $2,823,571.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $344,972,046.65. This represents a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 140,533 shares of company stock valued at $13,241,740. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE:WMT opened at $95.02 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $58.58 and a 52 week high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $90.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $90.83. The firm has a market cap of $761.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.43, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

About Walmart

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.