Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 66,244 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 841 shares during the quarter. Walmart makes up about 0.7% of Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $5,816,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,194,278,000 after buying an additional 2,050,683 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,167,186,000 after acquiring an additional 3,017,829 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,737,355,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Walmart by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 42,015,818 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,796,129,000 after purchasing an additional 514,036 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $98.25 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market cap of $784.08 billion, a PE ratio of 41.99, a P/E/G ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 0.68. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.67 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.29.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS 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 paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $2,716,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,064,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $103,252,135. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.85, for a total transaction of $1,258,031.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 945,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $90,619,848.90. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 140,511 shares of company stock valued at $13,493,751. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on WMT. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $117.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $106.50.

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.