Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,990,804 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 270,731 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned 0.10% of Walmart worth $721,969,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in Walmart by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer's stock worth $24,532,000 after purchasing an additional 19,233 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. raised its holdings in Walmart by 209.7% during the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer's stock worth $79,960,000 after purchasing an additional 599,257 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,332,000 after buying an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $18,355,000 after acquiring an additional 9,292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iowa State Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 213.8% in the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,422,000 after purchasing an additional 18,263 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.82, for a total transaction of $166,883.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 520,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $49,332,475.50. This trade represents a 0.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,972,517 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. This represents a 0.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 178,782 shares of company stock worth $16,785,305 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WMT shares. Raymond James decreased their price target on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $115.00 target price (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Walmart from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.58.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT stock traded up $1.98 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $93.17. The company had a trading volume of 21,350,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,819,973. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $91.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $90.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $746.93 billion, a PE ratio of 38.66, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $58.56 and a fifty-two week high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $178.83 billion. Analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

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.