Heritage Investors Management Corp Reduces Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Heritage Investors Management Corp trimmed its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 531,026 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,279 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 1.5% of Heritage Investors Management Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings in Walmart were worth $47,978,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart by 77.3% during the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $96.11 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $95.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $87.17. The stock has a market cap of $772.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.20 and a one year high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS 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 paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WMT. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 146,528 shares of company stock valued at $13,849,185 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.