Covington Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 25,964 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. cut its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 21.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 93,790 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 25,964 shares during the period. Walmart comprises approximately 0.7% of Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $8,474,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the third quarter worth about $43,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE WMT 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 company’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 price-to-earnings ratio of 35.53, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Two investment 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 presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares in the company, valued at $25,419,362.80. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total value of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,766,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $348,852,396.42. The trade was a 0.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 147,528 shares of company stock valued at $14,096,140. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.