Wedbush Securities Inc. Acquires 7,487 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 106,972 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 7,487 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $9,665,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,289,419,000 after buying an additional 6,860,189 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Walmart by 14.0% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,167,186,000 after acquiring an additional 3,017,829 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $83.65. The stock had a trading volume of 36,845,575 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,253,380. 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 firm's fifty day moving average is $94.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.67. The company has a market capitalization of $670.59 billion, a PE ratio of 34.71, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69.

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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 the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The business 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total value of $1,220,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,859,472.96. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $44,049,852.03. This represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.17.

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.