Piscataqua Savings Bank Raises Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Piscataqua Savings Bank boosted its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 38.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,085 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Piscataqua Savings Bank’s holdings in Walmart were worth $95,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. CMC Financial Group purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the first quarter worth about $270,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in Walmart by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 29,406 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,582,000 after buying an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 920,235 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $80,787,000 after buying an additional 47,186 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its stake in Walmart by 0.4% during the first quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 52,056 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,570,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank grew its stake in Walmart by 1.4% during the first quarter. City State Bank now owns 13,338 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,171,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total transaction of $2,815,113.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,451,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $429,896,799.42. This represents a 0.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.82, for a total transaction of $166,883.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 520,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,332,475.50. The trade was a 0.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 137,534 shares of company stock worth $12,833,664 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $97.46 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.64 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $779.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.44, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The company’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $117.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Two equities 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.16.

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.