Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Stock Position Decreased by Westchester Capital Management Inc.

Westchester Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 257,877 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 12,154 shares during the period. Walmart comprises 5.9% of Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $23,299,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $431,632,000 after purchasing an additional 18,644 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Walmart by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,235,504 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $503,517,000 after acquiring an additional 809,352 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at $231,000. FDx Advisors Inc. grew its position in Walmart by 51.2% in the 3rd quarter. FDx Advisors Inc. now owns 6,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $497,000 after acquiring an additional 2,082 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Walmart by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 29,884 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,413,000 after acquiring an additional 3,693 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT opened at $87.44 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $702.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.28, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $96.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.56 and a 12 month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. Walmart’s payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on WMT shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. DZ Bank raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 price objective (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Company 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.