E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 107.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 61,018 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 31,661 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $5,513,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Candriam S.C.A. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 209.7% during the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $79,960,000 after buying an additional 599,257 shares in the last quarter. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $406,000. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 222.4% during the 4th quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 10,398 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $939,000 after acquiring an additional 7,173 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 32,338 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,922,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares during the period. Finally, Inceptionr LLC increased its stake in Walmart by 36.8% in the 4th quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 22,230 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,008,000 after purchasing an additional 5,983 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total transaction of $2,689,601.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This trade represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $94.59 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $96.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $88.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $759.87 billion, a PE ratio of 39.25, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.56 and a 12 month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 target price (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price 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.