Lazard Asset Management LLC Purchases 199,931 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 64.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 508,433 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 199,931 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $45,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,194,278,000 after buying an additional 2,050,683 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,167,186,000 after purchasing an additional 3,017,829 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,737,355,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,408,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,133,201 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Walmart by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.37, for a total value of $214,214.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 632,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,607,751.66. This represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 133,857 shares of company stock worth $12,444,743 over the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $96.75 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $90.68 and its 200-day moving average is $92.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $774.09 billion, a PE ratio of 40.15, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $59.44 and a 52 week high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. Equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. This represents a yield of 0.95%. Walmart’s payout ratio is 39.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WMT. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Walmart from $111.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group cut their price target on Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 price target (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.94.

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.