Parkside Investments LLC Lowers Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Parkside Investments LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 60.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,289 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 71,720 shares during the quarter. Parkside Investments LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $4,064,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. World Investment Advisors lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,532,000 after purchasing an additional 19,233 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 209.7% in the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $79,960,000 after purchasing an additional 599,257 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,355,000 after purchasing an additional 9,292 shares during the last quarter. Cushing Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $1,124,000. Finally, Campbell Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $359,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $94.80 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $758.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.34, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The business’s 50 day moving average is $95.54 and its 200 day moving average is $94.04. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.95 and a 12-month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a yield of 0.95%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total value of $2,493,888.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,972,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $340,166,630.71. This trade represents a 0.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $76,350,158.55. This represents a 0.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 137,534 shares of company stock worth $12,833,664 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WMT. Wall Street Zen upgraded Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 price target (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.50.

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.