Forest Avenue Capital Management LP Has $44.92 Million Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Forest Avenue Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 74.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 663,427 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 283,527 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for 6.2% of Forest Avenue Capital Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP’s holdings in Walmart were worth $44,921,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arista Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Walmart during the 2nd quarter valued at $481,000. TPG Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the second quarter valued at $442,000. Summit Trail Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 27.3% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 35,845 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,427,000 after purchasing an additional 7,698 shares during the period. Chesapeake Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Walmart by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 25,795 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,747,000 after purchasing an additional 1,349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in Walmart by 19.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,541,659 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $104,388,000 after purchasing an additional 249,232 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE WMT opened at $79.06 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.85 and a 1 year high of $81.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $635.92 billion, a PE ratio of 33.79, a PEG ratio of 4.03 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 business’s 50-day moving average is $73.44 and its 200 day moving average is $66.78.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The retailer reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $169.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.56 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 2.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.61 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WMT. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Walmart from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Walmart from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Walmart from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, August 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $78.99.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.39, for a total transaction of $1,991,790.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,960,402 shares in the company, valued at $270,851,892.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.39, for a total transaction of $1,991,790.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,960,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $270,851,892.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 25,578 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.58, for a total value of $1,728,561.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 390,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,367,350.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,369,039 shares of company stock worth $959,826,083. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.