Country Trust Bank Sells 55,147 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Country Trust Bank reduced its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 9.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 560,119 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 55,147 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for about 1.1% of Country Trust Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Country Trust Bank’s holdings in Walmart were worth $45,230,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AHL Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 192.1% in the 1st quarter. AHL Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,000 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,444,000 after purchasing an additional 15,785 shares in the last quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 1st quarter worth about $270,000. Commerce Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 189.4% in the 1st quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 917,625 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $55,213,000 after purchasing an additional 600,521 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in Walmart by 290.7% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 270,065 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $16,250,000 after acquiring an additional 200,947 shares during the period. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in Walmart by 189.4% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 643,848 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,740,000 after acquiring an additional 421,366 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT stock opened at $79.71 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $640.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $75.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.39. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.85 and a 1 year high of $81.60.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. Walmart’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.61 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other Walmart news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total transaction of $313,228,886.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 611,988,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,245,498,149.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder S Robson Walton sold 4,057,369 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.20, for a total value of $313,228,886.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 611,988,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,245,498,149.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.04, for a total value of $1,063,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 606,165 shares in the company, valued at $49,123,611.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,337,670 shares of company stock valued at $958,267,937 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Walmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. DA Davidson increased their target price on Walmart from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Walmart from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $81.96.

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.