Ipsen Advisor Group LLC Takes Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Ipsen Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 18,842 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,702,000. Walmart comprises about 1.5% of Ipsen Advisor Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of WMT stock traded down $0.73 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $84.90. 8,123,927 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,130,941. The business's fifty day moving average is $94.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $680.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.23, a P/E/G 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. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

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Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued 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 is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,766,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $348,852,396.42. This represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total transaction of $1,220,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 568,626 shares in the company, valued at $52,859,472.96. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 147,528 shares of company stock valued at $14,096,140. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on WMT. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. DZ Bank raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $110.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Two investment 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $103.17.

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.