Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Stock Holdings Lowered by Boston Research & Management Inc.

Boston Research & Management Inc. lessened its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 133,902 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,849 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for about 3.0% of Boston Research & Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $12,098,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 14.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,235,504 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $503,517,000 after buying an additional 809,352 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $270,000. PDT Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth about $538,000. Circle Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Circle Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,748 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $464,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the period. Finally, Tradition Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,792 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,921,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of WMT opened at $85.08 on Monday. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $58.56 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $682.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.30, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $94.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty 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 a consensus target price of $103.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total transaction of $2,697,464.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,766,491 shares in the company, valued at $348,852,396.42. This represents a 0.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 147,528 shares of company stock worth $14,096,140 over the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.