Geode Capital Management LLC Has $8.17 Billion Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 90,635,238 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 3,017,829 shares during the period. Walmart makes up approximately 0.6% of Geode Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. 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 hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during 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 during the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price objective on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 423,597 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total value of $1,220,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,859,472.96. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT traded down $2.42 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $84.84. The stock had a trading volume of 14,818,724 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,064,134. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $94.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.50. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $58.56 and a 52 week high of $105.30. The company has a market capitalization of $680.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.26, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The business 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders 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 yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.