AIA Group Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

AIA Group Ltd increased its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 49.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 68,881 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 22,807 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in Walmart were worth $6,223,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 1,007.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,766,491 shares in the company, valued at $348,852,396.42. This represents a 0.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 176,652 shares of company stock worth $16,590,028 over the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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Walmart Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE:WMT traded up $0.91 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $88.70. 22,070,021 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,984,104. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.56 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $94.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $711.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.81, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's payout ratio is 39.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. DZ Bank raised Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.17.

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.