Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc.

Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. decreased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,651 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 114 shares during the period. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Umpqua Bank grew its position in Walmart by 29.3% during the 2nd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 6,792 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $460,000 after purchasing an additional 1,541 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 5,376.9% in the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,305,751 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $88,412,000 after buying an additional 1,281,910 shares in the last quarter. Chris Bulman Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the second quarter valued at about $273,000. Asset Dedication LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 19.3% during the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 119,414 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,086,000 after purchasing an additional 19,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 274.6% during the 2nd quarter. MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC now owns 64,143 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,343,000 after purchasing an additional 47,021 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WMT shares. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Walmart from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Melius Research started coverage on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $93.69.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE WMT traded up $0.53 during trading on Monday, reaching $91.31. 14,502,896 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,526,692. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.23 and a 1-year high of $96.18. The company has a market cap of $733.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.47, a P/E/G ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.55. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $89.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.51 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.47, for a total value of $277,410.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 375,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,691,507.55. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares in the company, valued at $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 140,412 shares of company stock worth $12,478,116 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.