Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Position Reduced by WoodTrust Financial Corp

WoodTrust Financial Corp reduced its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 147,148 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 290 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 1.9% of WoodTrust Financial Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. WoodTrust Financial Corp’s holdings in Walmart were worth $13,295,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 3.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,048,465,000 after buying an additional 2,786,061 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,098,203,000 after purchasing an additional 7,200,004 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,408,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,133,201 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 41,501,782 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,392,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480,927 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,893,079,000 after purchasing an additional 3,927,173 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Down 2.9 %

WMT stock opened at $94.74 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $761.04 billion, a PE ratio of 39.31, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.56 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.07.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total value of $1,261,968.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. This trade represents a 2.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total value of $2,823,571.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,558,247 shares in the company, valued at $344,972,046.65. The trade was a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316 over the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.