Foster Group Inc. Raises Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Foster Group Inc. boosted its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 194.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,409 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 10,167 shares during the period. Foster Group Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $927,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $732,000. CI Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 7.0% in the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 32,762 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,240,000 after acquiring an additional 2,139 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Walmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 8.5% in the third quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,783,118 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $285,174,000 after acquiring an additional 139,745 shares during the period. Finally, Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Walmart by 5.2% in the third quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,103 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $656,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on WMT shares. Truist Financial upped their target price on Walmart from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th. UBS Group upped their target price on Walmart from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Walmart from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.97.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $68.03 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $547.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.52. The business’s 50-day moving average is $63.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.58. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.85 and a 1 year high of $68.13.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $161.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.57 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 2.88%. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total transaction of $1,944,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 144,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,386,389.74. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 1,244,347 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total transaction of $82,910,840.61. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 633,518,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,211,325,061.93. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $1,944,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 144,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,386,389.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,493,971 shares of company stock valued at $950,549,592 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Company 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.