Dark Forest Capital Management LP Lowers Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Dark Forest Capital Management LP reduced its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 74.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,908 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 8,503 shares during the quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP's holdings in Walmart were worth $263,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Alta Advisers Ltd raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd now owns 14,513 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,311,000 after acquiring an additional 2,713 shares in the last quarter. SIH Partners LLLP purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $200,000. Beacon Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,591 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,306,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 1,726,389 shares of the retailer's stock worth $155,979,000 after acquiring an additional 9,425 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 460.6% during the fourth quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 466,236 shares of the retailer's stock worth $42,124,000 after acquiring an additional 383,063 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI decreased their price target 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. Citigroup reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $102.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $103.58.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction 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 represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 169,657 shares of company stock worth $15,984,929. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $95.16 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $762.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.49, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The firm's 50-day moving average is $90.40 and its 200 day moving average is $91.02. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.58 and a 1 year 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.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors 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 is currently 39.00%.

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.

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