Deane Retirement Strategies Inc. Sells 28,776 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Deane Retirement Strategies Inc. lessened its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 52.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 26,200 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 28,776 shares during the period. Deane Retirement Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $2,367,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brophy Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,072,000. Bank of New Hampshire boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,332,000 after buying an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Iowa State Bank grew its holdings in Walmart by 213.8% during the fourth quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,422,000 after buying an additional 18,263 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Walmart by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,848,533,000 after acquiring an additional 2,107,197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth $541,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WMT. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. DZ Bank downgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their target price on Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.69.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $98.61 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $92.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $82.79. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.04 and a twelve month high of $98.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $792.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.47, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.44, for a total value of $2,663,098.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,814,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $348,825,769.20. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 137,177 shares of company stock worth $12,649,328. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.