Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 96.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 850,171 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 417,568 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $51,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $3,674,652,000. BlueSpruce Investments LP purchased a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth $568,419,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 15,371.4% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,511,225 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $553,545,000 after buying an additional 3,488,530 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Walmart by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 20,235,920 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,190,194,000 after buying an additional 2,150,351 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its stake in Walmart by 14,035.2% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 1,274,428 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $200,914,000 after buying an additional 1,265,412 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walmart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.94.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.45, for a total value of $1,760,545.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,047,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $244,687,515.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.81, for a total value of $798,131.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 645,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,253,888.77. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.45, for a total transaction of $1,760,545.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,047,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $244,687,515.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,493,971 shares of company stock valued at $950,549,592 in the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $67.60 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $543.74 billion, a PE ratio of 28.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.52. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $49.85 and a one year high of $67.87.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $161.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 21.57%. Walmart’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. Research analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.