Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 490,349 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 15,672 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for approximately 0.7% of Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $44,303,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 77.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Down 1.6 %

WMT opened at $96.11 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.20 and a one year high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $95.70 and its 200-day moving average is $87.17. The company has a market capitalization of $772.10 billion, a PE ratio of 39.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.47, for a total transaction of $277,410.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 375,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,691,507.55. The trade was a 0.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 146,528 shares of company stock valued at $13,849,185 over the last three months. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WMT. StockNews.com lowered Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 price target (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.07.

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.