Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 90,635,238 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 3,017,829 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for 0.6% of Geode Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.13% of Walmart worth $8,167,186,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Walmart by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $924,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,417,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. now owns 6,849 shares of the retailer's stock worth $619,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 5,584 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 3,766,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at $348,852,396.42. This represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total transaction of $1,220,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,859,472.96. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 176,652 shares of company stock valued at $16,590,028 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Up 1.0 %

WMT stock traded up $0.91 on Tuesday, reaching $88.70. The company's stock had a trading volume of 22,070,021 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,996,645. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $89.51. The firm has a market cap of $711.10 billion, a PE ratio of 36.81, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS 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 given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup restated a "positive" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.