Leslie Global Wealth LLC Acquires 568 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Leslie Global Wealth LLC increased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 22.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,154 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 568 shares during the quarter. Leslie Global Wealth LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. World Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Walmart by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 271,515 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,532,000 after buying an additional 19,233 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in Walmart by 209.7% in the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 885,008 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $79,960,000 after acquiring an additional 599,257 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire raised its position in Walmart by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 47,949 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,332,000 after purchasing an additional 5,786 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 203,150 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,355,000 after purchasing an additional 9,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Iowa State Bank increased its position in shares of Walmart by 213.8% during the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 26,807 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,422,000 after purchasing an additional 18,263 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 140,533 shares of company stock worth $13,241,740 over the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walmart Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $95.02 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $761.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.58 and a 1 year high of $105.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $90.58 and a 200 day moving average of $90.83.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.58.

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.