Foundations Investment Advisors LLC Raises Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT – Get Rating) by 9.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,375 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 809 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,329,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. EWG Elevate Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $158,000. Phocas Financial Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $149,000. JDM Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Carret Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC now owns 47,079 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,675,000 after acquiring an additional 806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McGuire Investment Group LLC grew its position in Walmart by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. McGuire Investment Group LLC now owns 30,342 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,302,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.27% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $139.40 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $117.27 and a 1 year high of $160.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company has a market capitalization of $375.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.57, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.48. The company’s fifty day moving average is $142.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $141.10.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 21st. The retailer reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.20. Walmart had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 20.45%. The company had revenue of $164.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $158.67 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.53 EPS. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 8th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 7th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 53.27%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 4,375 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.81, for a total value of $633,543.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 255,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,935,093.79. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Rachel L. Brand sold 9,334 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.83, for a total value of $1,323,841.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 155,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,086,193.09. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 4,375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.81, for a total transaction of $633,543.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 255,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,935,093.79. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,830,325 shares of company stock valued at $1,378,798,478 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 47.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on WMT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Walmart from $164.00 to $169.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Credit Suisse Group set a $170.00 price target on shares of Walmart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Walmart from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 6th. UBS Group set a $168.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Finally, Cowen increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.44.

About Walmart

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Walmart, Inc engages in retail and wholesale business. The company offers an assortment of merchandise and services at everyday low prices. It operates through the following business segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam’s Club. The Walmart U.S. segment operates as a merchandiser of consumer products, operating under the Walmart, Wal-Mart, and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands, as well as walmart.com and other eCommerce brands.