Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Acquired by Eagle Asset Management Inc.

Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 16.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 345,418 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,878 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $29,302,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CAP Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. CAP Partners LLC now owns 6,054 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $489,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Investment Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,182 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $499,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Jag Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC now owns 9,413 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Professional Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Professional Financial Advisors LLC now owns 21,839 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,763,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 6,677 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $539,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Trading Up 2.3 %

WMT opened at $90.44 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $726.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.51. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.85 and a 52 week high of $90.91. The business’s 50 day moving average is $82.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The company had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walmart to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Roth Mkm increased their price target on Walmart from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Walmart from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. DA Davidson raised their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Walmart from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 2,063 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.76, for a total value of $166,607.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 459,558 shares in the company, valued at $37,113,904.08. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,375,563 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.96, for a total value of $182,823,328.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 619,646,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,687,998,026.24. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,337,337 shares of company stock worth $958,823,647. 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.