TIAA Trust National Association Purchases 34,870 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

TIAA Trust National Association increased its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 521,987 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 34,870 shares during the quarter. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in Walmart were worth $47,162,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Citigroup restated a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Two research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $87.56 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $95.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.19. The stock has a market cap of $701.92 billion, a PE ratio of 36.33, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $58.56 and a fifty-two week high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.07%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total transaction of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 189,777 shares of company stock valued at $18,001,116 in the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.