Guardian Investment Management Reduces Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Guardian Investment Management lessened its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 62,795 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 19,242 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises about 4.1% of Guardian Investment Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Guardian Investment Management’s holdings in Walmart were worth $5,071,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Hoese & Co LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 138.3% during the 2nd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cultivar Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.97, for a total value of $242,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 381,165 shares in the company, valued at $30,862,930.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,063 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.76, for a total value of $166,607.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 459,558 shares in the company, valued at $37,113,904.08. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.97, for a total transaction of $242,910.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 381,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,862,930.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,337,670 shares of company stock worth $958,267,937 over the last quarter. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WMT. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $83.00 price target (up from $81.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 16th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.32.

Walmart Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE WMT traded up $0.49 during trading on Friday, reaching $80.10. 9,570,734 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,313,674. The firm has a market cap of $643.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.51. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $76.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.85 and a fifty-two week high of $81.60.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $169.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.61 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

About Walmart

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.