Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Bought by Marco Investment Management LLC

Marco Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 87,988 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,533 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 1.4% of Marco Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Marco Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $13,871,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Kepos Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at about $50,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Walmart from $62.00 to $63.33 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com raised Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Walmart to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 26th. Stifel Europe raised their price target on Walmart from $56.33 to $58.33 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price target on Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.75.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.72, for a total value of $167,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 530,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,565,756.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.72, for a total value of $167,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 530,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,565,756.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.93, for a total value of $1,687,250.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,076,892 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $236,187,943.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,019,140 shares of company stock valued at $1,696,035,551 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT opened at $60.24 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $485.52 billion, a PE ratio of 31.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.86. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.34 and a fifty-two week high of $61.65.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $173.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $170.85 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.08% and a net margin of 2.39%. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.2075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.38%.

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.