Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 222.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,398 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,173 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $939,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $349,609,579.70. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $91.68 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $736.46 billion, a PE ratio of 38.04, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.56 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $96.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.26.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 21st. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.07.

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.