Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Bought by Clearstead Trust LLC

Clearstead Trust LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 30.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,719 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Clearstead Trust LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $271,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Kepos Capital LP acquired a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE:WMT traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $59.82. The stock had a trading volume of 14,207,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,769,110. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.34 and a 1-year high of $61.65. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $482.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.26, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.49.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. Walmart had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 21.08%. The business had revenue of $173.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $170.85 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.57 EPS. Walmart’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.2075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. Walmart’s payout ratio is presently 43.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, Director S Robson Walton sold 5,816,175 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.95, for a total value of $337,066,728.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 677,052,654 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,237,458,141.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Walmart news, SVP David Chojnowski sold 10,950 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.33, for a total value of $638,750.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 104,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,086,850. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director S Robson Walton sold 5,816,175 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.95, for a total transaction of $337,066,728.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 677,052,654 shares in the company, valued at $39,237,458,141.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,019,140 shares of company stock worth $1,696,045,631 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 46.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. 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 report on Wednesday, March 13th. Stifel Europe boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $56.33 to $58.33 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $63.33 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $54.33 to $58.67 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.75.

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.