M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. Takes $490,000 Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,418 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $490,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 479.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 18,479,259 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,492,200,000 after purchasing an additional 15,290,936 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,098,203,000 after buying an additional 7,200,004 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 8,814.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,963,218 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $562,280,000 after acquiring an additional 6,885,106 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,048,465,000 after acquiring an additional 2,786,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 4.6% in the third 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 period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT traded up $0.86 on Tuesday, hitting $92.80. 10,410,869 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,300,430. The firm has a market capitalization of $745.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $91.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.63. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.44 and a 1-year high of $96.18.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 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 firm had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.79, for a total transaction of $2,411,175.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,843,929 shares of the company's stock, valued at $318,238,881.91. This trade represents a 0.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.96, for a total value of $1,088,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 593,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,198,598.40. This represents a 2.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 140,177 shares of company stock worth $12,478,149 over the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on WMT. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $94.69.

Walmart 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.