Provence Wealth Management Group Grows Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Provence Wealth Management Group raised its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 15.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,161 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 807 shares during the period. Provence Wealth Management Group’s holdings in Walmart were worth $971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the third quarter worth $25,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Kepos Capital LP acquired a new stake in Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Up 0.2 %

WMT traded up $0.11 on Friday, hitting $59.82. 14,207,397 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,769,110. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $60.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.34 and a twelve month high of $61.65. The company has a market cap of $482.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.49.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $173.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.85 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.08% and a net margin of 2.39%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.57 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 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 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.2075 dividend. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.38%.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.78, for a total value of $117,560.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 656,395,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,582,913,441.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director S Robson Walton sold 14,685,327 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.61, for a total value of $860,755,966.56. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 656,397,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,473,631,458.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.78, for a total transaction of $117,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 656,395,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,582,913,441.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 29,019,140 shares of company stock worth $1,696,045,631. 46.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $54.33 to $58.67 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Walmart from $67.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Walmart presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.75.

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.