Modern Wealth Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 36.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,199 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,586 shares during the period. Modern Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $4,897,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WMT. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $2,306,627,000. FMR LLC grew its stake 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 during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 37.1% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,289,419,000 after purchasing an additional 6,860,189 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake 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 during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,048,465,000 after buying an additional 2,786,061 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on WMT. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total transaction of $1,261,968.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. The trade was a 2.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at $76,350,158.55. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 189,777 shares of company stock worth $18,001,116. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Trading Up 1.8 %

WMT stock opened at $87.56 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $701.92 billion, a PE ratio of 36.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $95.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $89.19. 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 fifty-two week low of $58.56 and a fifty-two week high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its 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. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

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.