Hobbs Wealth Management LLC Purchases New Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Hobbs Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,728 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $427,000. Walmart comprises 0.5% of Hobbs Wealth Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,235,504 shares of the retailer's stock worth $503,517,000 after acquiring an additional 809,352 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 31.9% during the 3rd quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,716 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $946,000 after purchasing an additional 2,831 shares during the period. TCW Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 140.1% during the 3rd quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 151,115 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $12,203,000 after buying an additional 88,177 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth $541,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its stake in Walmart by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 9,052 shares of the retailer's stock worth $731,000 after buying an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $94.70. 9,821,636 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,667,925. The firm has a market cap of $759.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.56 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $90.06.

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Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $178.83 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 178,852 shares of company stock worth $16,785,080 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $115.00 price objective (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and set a $108.00 target price (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.58.

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.