Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Position Trimmed by Colonial River Investments LLC

Colonial River Investments LLC trimmed its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 22.4% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 19,833 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 5,738 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises 1.0% of Colonial River Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Colonial River Investments LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,741,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 69,542 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,283,000 after buying an additional 992 shares during the period. Eagle Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 3,861 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 28.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,868,000 after purchasing an additional 21,939 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Walmart by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $800,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its position in Walmart by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 9,194 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $831,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WMT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $103.00 target price (up from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, May 5th. 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 an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $374,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,096,455 shares in the company, valued at $102,518,542.50. This trade represents a 0.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,760 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.82, for a total value of $166,883.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 520,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,332,475.50. This represents a 0.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 142,711 shares of company stock worth $13,688,803 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of WMT opened at $97.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.23. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $66.67 and a 52 week high of $105.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $777.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.63, a P/E/G ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.69.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. 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 firm posted $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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