Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Purchased by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS grew its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 19.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,482,017 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 236,790 shares during the period. Walmart makes up about 0.6% of DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Walmart were worth $133,900,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter valued at $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. The trade was a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 147,528 shares of company stock worth $14,096,140 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Walmart stock opened at $85.62 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.56 and a one year high of $105.30. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $94.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $686.37 billion, a PE ratio of 35.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

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

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. 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. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.17.

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.