Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Grows Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 873,049 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 7,271 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 0.9% of Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $78,880,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Garner Asset Management Corp lifted its position in Walmart by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 45,432 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,076,000 after acquiring an additional 4,133 shares during the period. Mittelman Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the second quarter valued at approximately $227,000. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 94,503 shares of the retailer's stock worth $6,399,000 after purchasing an additional 2,134 shares in the last quarter. Delaney Dennis R purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $200,000. Finally, Austin Asset Management Co Inc increased its position in Walmart by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Austin Asset Management Co Inc now owns 8,307 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $562,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were 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 approximately $318,238,881.91. This trade represents a 0.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 140,177 shares of company stock worth $12,478,149. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WMT shares. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Walmart to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.49.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT traded up $0.72 during trading on Friday, hitting $92.02. The company had a trading volume of 15,705,502 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,681,198. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $53.44 and a 12 month high of $96.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $739.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.10.

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. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm's revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

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.