Investment Planning Advisors Inc. Acquires 1,356 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Investment Planning Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 61.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,580 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,356 shares during the period. Investment Planning Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $314,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart during the 1st quarter worth $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Up 1.8%

NYSE:WMT opened at $97.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.15. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $66.55 and a one year high of $105.30. The firm has a market cap of $781.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.83, a P/E/G ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.78.

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. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,972,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. This represents a 0.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.66, for a total transaction of $195,052.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 398,024 shares in the company, valued at $35,288,807.84. The trade was a 0.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 152,419 shares of company stock worth $14,295,650 in the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $103.00 price objective (up from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.50.

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.