Kelly Financial Services LLC Buys New Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Kelly Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 68,174 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $6,159,000. Walmart makes up about 1.8% of Kelly Financial Services LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WMT. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 3.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,048,465,000 after buying an additional 2,786,061 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Walmart by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,098,203,000 after acquiring an additional 7,200,004 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 4.6% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 47,659,844 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,848,533,000 after purchasing an additional 2,107,197 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Walmart by 3.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 41,501,782 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,392,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Walmart by 1.8% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 36,282,740 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,456,704,000 after purchasing an additional 644,353 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In other news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.60, for a total value of $1,215,375.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 566,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,485,124.40. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.79, for a total transaction of $2,411,175.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,843,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $318,238,881.91. The trade was a 0.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 140,177 shares of company stock worth $12,478,149 over the last quarter. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WMT. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Barclays raised their price objective on Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Melius Research assumed coverage on Walmart in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on Walmart from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.49.

Walmart Price Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $92.02 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $739.19 billion, a PE ratio of 37.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $91.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $53.44 and a 52-week high of $96.18.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.