First Horizon Advisors Inc. Sells 224,595 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. cut its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 49.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 231,838 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 224,595 shares during the quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $20,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new position in Walmart during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $53,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of WMT stock opened at $97.62 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $779.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.68. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.67 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $97.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.31.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total transaction of $2,716,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,064,455 shares in the company, valued at $103,252,135. The trade was a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total transaction of $2,815,113.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,451,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $429,896,799.42. This represents a 0.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 142,711 shares of company stock worth $13,710,319 in the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.67.

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.