Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Holdings Raised by PDS Planning Inc

PDS Planning Inc boosted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 15.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,419 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,452 shares during the quarter. PDS Planning Inc’s holdings in Walmart were worth $2,387,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC lifted its position in Walmart by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 58,929 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,324,000 after buying an additional 1,932 shares in the last quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Walmart by 167.8% in the 4th quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. now owns 29,289 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,646,000 after buying an additional 18,353 shares in the last quarter. RD Lewis Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,637,000. Petra Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $770,000. Finally, BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,672 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $603,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on WMT shares. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.20.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $166,658.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. The trade was a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total transaction of $1,261,968.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. The trade was a 2.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316 over the last quarter. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE:WMT opened at $87.54 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $95.67 and its 200-day moving average is $88.88. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.56 and a 52-week high of $105.30. 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 company has a market cap of $703.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.32, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

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.