Bessemer Group Inc. Sells 1,258,488 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Bessemer Group Inc. trimmed its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 19.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,267,626 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,258,488 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 0.8% of Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Bessemer Group Inc. owned 0.07% of Walmart worth $462,445,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. World Investment Advisors increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 19,233 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 209.7% during 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 increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,355,000 after purchasing an additional 9,292 shares during the period. Cushing Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,124,000. Finally, GWN Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,658,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $117.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $106.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.66, for a total value of $195,052.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 398,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,288,807.84. The trade was a 0.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.82, for a total value of $166,883.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 520,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,332,475.50. This trade represents a 0.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 123,295 shares of company stock valued at $11,801,762 in the last three months. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $97.24 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $96.65 and a 200-day moving average of $94.20. The company has a market capitalization of $776.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $66.67 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted 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 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

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.