River Street Advisors LLC Purchases 265 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

River Street Advisors LLC increased its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 2.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,008 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. River Street Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,054,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,306,627,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 9,896.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,939,728 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $697,029,000 after acquiring an additional 7,860,306 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,893,079,000 after acquiring an additional 3,927,173 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Walmart by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,943,049,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550,037 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of WMT opened at $95.10 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.55 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market capitalization of $758.95 billion, a PE ratio of 40.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 0.69. The business’s 50 day moving average is $96.32 and its 200 day moving average is $94.13.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on WMT shares. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,972,517 shares in the company, valued at $340,166,630.71. The trade was a 0.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 520,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,332,475.50. The trade was a 0.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 135,294 shares of company stock valued at $12,656,659 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.