Principia Wealth Advisory LLC Sells 918 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Principia Wealth Advisory LLC decreased its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 40.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,333 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 918 shares during the period. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $119,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $2,306,627,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 9,896.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,939,728 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $697,029,000 after purchasing an additional 7,860,306 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,893,079,000 after purchasing an additional 3,927,173 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $217,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 630,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,421,282. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. This trade represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 137,534 shares of company stock valued at $12,833,664 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

Walmart stock opened at $97.46 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $94.71 and its 200 day moving average is $93.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $779.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.44, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $65.64 and a one year high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 5th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho started coverage on Walmart in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.16.

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.