R Squared Ltd Invests $246,000 in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 2,726 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WMT. Brophy Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $2,072,000. Bank of New Hampshire raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,332,000 after acquiring an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Iowa State Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 213.8% in the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,422,000 after acquiring an additional 18,263 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Walmart by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,848,533,000 after acquiring an additional 2,107,197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at $541,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. DZ Bank lowered Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $91.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $95.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total value of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,766,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $348,852,396.42. This trade represents a 0.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 137,177 shares of company stock worth $12,649,328 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Walmart stock traded down $0.68 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $97.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,379,679 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,055,752. The company has a market capitalization of $787.00 billion, a PE ratio of 40.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $92.91 and a 200 day moving average of $82.90. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.04 and a 12 month high of $99.00.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current year.

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.