Polymer Capital Management HK LTD Raises Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Polymer Capital Management HK LTD raised its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 355.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 44,364 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 34,614 shares during the quarter. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD's holdings in Walmart were worth $4,008,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on WMT. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer cut their price target on Walmart from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $102.43.

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Walmart Stock Performance

WMT stock traded up $1.20 during trading on Thursday, reaching $90.80. The stock had a trading volume of 20,903,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,517,938. The stock's 50 day moving average is $92.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market cap of $727.90 billion, a PE ratio of 37.51, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $58.56 and a 52 week high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total transaction of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,766,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $348,852,396.42. The trade was a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

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.