Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lowered its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 166,600 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,315 shares during the quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $26,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Walmart by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 137,214,807 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $21,944,764,000 after purchasing an additional 751,713 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Walmart by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 24,087,268 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,852,277,000 after purchasing an additional 426,388 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,674,652,000. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Walmart by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,873,127 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,698,519,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,729 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Walmart by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,765,278 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,361,411,000 after purchasing an additional 562,256 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WMT. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Stifel Europe lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $56.33 to $58.33 in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.01.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 500,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total value of $29,195,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 653,067,261 shares in the company, valued at $38,132,597,369.79. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Jim C. Walton sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 656,395,261 shares in the company, valued at $38,582,913,441.58. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 500,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.39, for a total transaction of $29,195,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 653,067,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,132,597,369.79. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,077,748 shares of company stock worth $378,469,027. 46.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of WMT stock traded up $0.54 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $65.38. 11,790,934 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,698,928. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.80. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $48.34 and a one year high of $65.69. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $60.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $526.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.00, a P/E/G ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.49.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. Walmart had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The firm had revenue of $161.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.49 earnings per share. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.2075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. Walmart’s payout ratio is currently 35.52%.

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.