Proficio Capital Partners LLC Increases Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 90,423 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,765 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $8,170,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WMT. Swedbank AB grew its position in shares of Walmart by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,345,293 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $431,632,000 after buying an additional 18,644 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Walmart by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,235,504 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $503,517,000 after buying an additional 809,352 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $231,000. Curi RMB Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 43.2% in the 3rd quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 24,450 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,974,000 after buying an additional 7,381 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coastline Trust Co grew its position in shares of Walmart by 50.5% in the 3rd quarter. Coastline Trust Co now owns 35,352 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,855,000 after buying an additional 11,857 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Walmart from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target (up from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 21st. DZ Bank upgraded Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $103.20.

Walmart Stock Up 0.9 %

Walmart stock opened at $85.29 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $685.19 billion, a PE ratio of 35.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.56 and a one year high of $105.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $95.74 and a 200 day moving average of $88.71.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total value of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $349,609,579.70. This represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,485,124.40. This trade represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 185,777 shares of company stock valued at $17,657,316. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

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.