Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,284,788 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 16,334 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for about 0.7% of Arizona State Retirement System's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in Walmart were worth $116,081,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $2,072,000. Bank of New Hampshire grew its stake in Walmart by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,332,000 after buying an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer's stock worth $18,355,000 after buying an additional 9,292 shares during the last quarter. Iowa State Bank grew its stake in Walmart by 213.8% during the fourth quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,422,000 after buying an additional 18,263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 4.6% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,848,533,000 after buying an additional 2,107,197 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total transaction of $2,823,571.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $344,972,046.65. The trade was a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total value of $1,261,968.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 460,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. The trade was a 2.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316 in the last quarter. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Walmart Price Performance
Shares of WMT traded up $1.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $96.00. 17,621,592 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,545,287. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $96.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.09. The company has a market cap of $771.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.56 and a 12-month high of $105.30.
Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.
Walmart Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
WMT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.07.
Read Our Latest Analysis on WMT
Walmart Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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