368,974 Shares in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Bought by Gladstone Capital Management LLP

Gladstone Capital Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 368,974 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $33,337,000. Walmart accounts for about 2.8% of Gladstone Capital Management LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer's stock worth $38,194,278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,050,683 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,167,186,000 after acquiring an additional 3,017,829 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $5,737,355,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,408,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,133,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 42,015,818 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,796,129,000 after purchasing an additional 514,036 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Up 3.9 %

NYSE WMT traded up $3.23 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $85.02. The stock had a trading volume of 15,584,915 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,351,269. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.56 and a one year high of $105.30. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $93.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $89.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $681.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.11, 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 quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The company 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 predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. 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 1.11%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction of $343,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on WMT shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup reiterated a "positive" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.