Shelton Capital Management Reduces Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Shelton Capital Management lowered its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 143,938 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 13,197 shares during the period. Shelton Capital Management’s holdings in Walmart were worth $13,005,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 1,007.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $83.65 on Tuesday. Walmart Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $58.56 and a fifty-two week 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 firm has a market capitalization of $670.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.71, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $93.74 and a 200 day moving average of $89.71.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total value of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,766,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $348,852,396.42. This trade represents a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total value of $1,220,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,859,472.96. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 178,852 shares of company stock valued at $16,785,080. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WMT. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. DZ Bank raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

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.