Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc. Reduces Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc. reduced its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,944 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 105 shares during the period. Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $537,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the third quarter worth $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. increased its position in Walmart by 77.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP purchased a new position in Walmart during the third quarter worth $33,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE:WMT opened at $101.17 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $93.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.85 and a 12 month high of $103.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $812.73 billion, a PE ratio of 41.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.55.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on WMT. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Walmart from $83.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Walmart from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.01.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.00, for a total transaction of $1,207,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 579,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,352,180. The trade was a 2.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz bought 5,446 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $91.81 per share, for a total transaction of $499,997.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,577.05. The trade was a 230.86 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 175,177 shares of company stock valued at $16,403,728. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.