Meyer Handelman Co. Reduces Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Meyer Handelman Co. lowered its stake in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 0.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 755,009 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 4,516 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 2.3% of Meyer Handelman Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $66,282,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Whelan Financial grew its holdings in Walmart by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $392,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $538,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $310,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $924,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,417,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.94.

Walmart Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE WMT opened at $98.57 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $64.16 and a one year high of $105.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $93.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $788.65 billion, a PE ratio of 40.90, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This represents a yield of 0.95%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.82, for a total transaction of $166,883.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 520,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,332,475.50. This represents a 0.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total value of $2,815,113.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,451,199 shares in the company, valued at $429,896,799.42. This trade represents a 0.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 135,334 shares of company stock valued at $12,615,864. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.