Elgethun Capital Management Raises Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Elgethun Capital Management grew its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 4.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,316 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 251 shares during the period. Elgethun Capital Management’s holdings in Walmart were worth $993,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WMT. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 7.8% in the 2nd quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,071 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $326,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 66,651 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,476,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 51,561 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,104,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. WJ Interests LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 2nd quarter worth about $247,000. Finally, Legacy Capital Group California Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 15.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 7,065 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,111,000 after acquiring an additional 924 shares during the last quarter. 33.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE:WMT traded down $0.87 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $154.43. 1,873,776 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,981,626. The stock has a market capitalization of $415.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.75, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.53. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $136.09 and a 52-week high of $169.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $162.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $157.90.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 16th. The retailer reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.53. The company had revenue of $160.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.65 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.55% and a return on equity of 21.20%. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total transaction of $161,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 169,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,390,136.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 4,375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.00, for a total value of $708,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 269,119 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,597,278. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total transaction of $161,370.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 169,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,390,136.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,166 shares of company stock worth $5,066,701. Company insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Walmart from $187.00 to $177.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $175.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 18th. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, September 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Credit Suisse Group lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.00.

Walmart Profile

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, and other units 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, walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, and samsclub.com; and mobile commerce applications.