Edge Capital Group LLC Sells 745 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Edge Capital Group LLC lowered its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 296,398 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 745 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises approximately 1.4% of Edge Capital Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Edge Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $26,780,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,048,465,000 after purchasing an additional 2,786,061 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 12.9% during the third 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 increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 4.6% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,848,533,000 after purchasing an additional 2,107,197 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 41,501,782 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,392,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,236,769 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,522,369,000 after acquiring an additional 350,881 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on WMT. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $91.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP David Chojnowski sold 5,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.45, for a total transaction of $512,120.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 87,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,993,095.80. The trade was a 6.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 176,777 shares of company stock valued at $16,570,112. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $94.70 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $95.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.71. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $57.77 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $760.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.30, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is 34.44%.

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.