Zacks Investment Management Has $177.56 Million Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Zacks Investment Management lessened its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 10.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,965,196 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 229,434 shares during the period. Walmart makes up about 1.6% of Zacks Investment Management's portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Zacks Investment Management's holdings in Walmart were worth $177,555,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $38,194,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,683 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 3,017,829 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $5,737,355,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,133,201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 42,015,818 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,796,129,000 after acquiring an additional 514,036 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total value of $2,493,888.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,972,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. This represents a 0.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 178,782 shares of company stock worth $16,785,305. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE WMT traded up $1.98 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $93.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 21,350,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,797,031. The company has a market capitalization of $746.93 billion, a PE ratio of 38.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. 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 Inc. has a 52 week low of $58.56 and a 52 week high of $105.30. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $91.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $90.18.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. Research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's payout ratio is 39.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 price target (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.