BCS Wealth Management Trims Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

BCS Wealth Management lowered its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 16.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,507 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,522 shares during the period. BCS Wealth Management’s holdings in Walmart were worth $659,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMT. Whelan Financial lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $538,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $924,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on WMT. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. DZ Bank raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.16.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 888,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $217,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 630,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,421,282. This trade represents a 0.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 137,534 shares of company stock valued at $12,833,664. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $97.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $779.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.44, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $65.90 and a 52 week high of $105.30. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.88.

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

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.17%.

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.