Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Holdings Boosted by Narus Financial Partners LLC

Narus Financial Partners LLC raised its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 197.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,481,111 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 983,762 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises about 38.0% of Narus Financial Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Narus Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $89,118,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 200.8% during the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 473,783 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $28,508,000 after buying an additional 316,259 shares during the last quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 80.9% during the 1st quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 1,600,767 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $96,318,000 after buying an additional 715,871 shares during the last quarter. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 193.2% during the 1st quarter. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH now owns 20,797 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,251,000 after purchasing an additional 13,704 shares during the period. Edmonds Duncan Registered Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 200.0% during the 1st quarter. Edmonds Duncan Registered Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,768 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 5,845 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 218.1% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,554,046 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $153,677,000 after purchasing an additional 1,751,066 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walmart has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.47.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total value of $1,748,313.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares in the company, valued at $241,239,559.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.08, for a total value of $177,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 521,613 shares in the company, valued at $30,816,896.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.03, for a total transaction of $1,748,313.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,018,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $241,239,559.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,525,340 shares of company stock worth $953,023,399 in the last three months. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of WMT stock opened at $68.24 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $548.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.20, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.50. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $49.85 and a 1-year high of $69.04. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $64.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.65.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The retailer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $161.50 billion for 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%. The company’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.43 EPS for the current year.

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.