Quarry LP Purchases New Shares in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 6,372 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $576,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 37.1% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,289,419,000 after buying an additional 6,860,189 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Walmart by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,893,079,000 after buying an additional 3,927,173 shares during the period. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 1,707.6% in the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 3,718,058 shares of the retailer's stock worth $324,410,000 after buying an additional 3,512,368 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $95.16. The stock had a trading volume of 12,914,881 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,810,577. The firm's fifty day moving average is $90.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.02. The company has a market capitalization of $762.88 billion, a PE ratio of 39.49, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.58 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares of the company's stock, valued at $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.19, for a total transaction of $2,743,189.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,480,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $422,003,883.93. This trade represents a 0.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 169,657 shares of company stock valued at $15,984,929 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on WMT. Raymond James dropped their price target on Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 target price (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, KeyCorp upped 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $103.58.

Walmart 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.