Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Has $11.56 Million Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 8.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 143,200 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,700 shares during the quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $11,563,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted 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 during the period. Cultivar Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 77.3% during the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz bought 5,446 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $91.81 per share, for a total transaction of $499,997.26. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $716,577.05. This represents a 230.86 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,375,563 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was 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 represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,673,023 shares of company stock valued at $753,365,984. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Walmart from $89.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup upped their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Walmart from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.11.

Walmart Stock Up 0.9 %

WMT opened at $93.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.44. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.85 and a 52 week high of $93.59. The company has a market capitalization of $751.58 billion, a PE ratio of 38.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.