iA Global Asset Management Inc. Buys 285,823 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 148.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 478,348 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 285,823 shares during the quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $32,389,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Walmart during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Northwest Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Walmart by 199.3% in the 1st quarter. Northwest Capital Management Inc now owns 440 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 138.3% in the 2nd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the retailer's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the period. Cultivar Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT traded up $0.81 on Friday, hitting $77.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 23,093,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,417,189. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $70.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.53. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.85 and a fifty-two week high of $77.47. The company has a market capitalization of $621.20 billion, a PE ratio of 33.05, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The business had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $168.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.61 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 1,244,347 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total value of $82,910,840.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 633,518,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,211,325,061.93. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 1,244,347 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total value of $82,910,840.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 633,518,311 shares in the company, valued at $42,211,325,061.93. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 25,578 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.48, for a total value of $1,674,847.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 415,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,222,851.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,332,089 shares of company stock valued at $422,145,654 over the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Walmart from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Walmart from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Walmart from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. StockNews.com raised shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, HSBC increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $78.64.

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.

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