Salem Investment Counselors Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Salem Investment Counselors Inc. increased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 0.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 338,214 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,453 shares during the period. Walmart makes up about 1.0% of Salem Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Salem Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $29,760,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the first quarter worth $49,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at $62,421,282. This represents a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 28,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $2,716,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,064,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $103,252,135. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 137,534 shares of company stock worth $12,833,664. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $103.00 price target (up from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $106.50.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMT opened at $94.80 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $65.95 and a 52 week high of $105.30. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $95.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $94.04. The company has a market cap of $758.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.34, a PEG 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 (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The company 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 is presently 40.17%.

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.