UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Raises Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 963,184 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 56,763 shares during the quarter. Walmart accounts for 0.6% of UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Walmart were worth $87,024,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Walmart by 37.1% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 25,339,448 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,289,419,000 after acquiring an additional 6,860,189 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,020,800 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,893,079,000 after acquiring an additional 3,927,173 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,048,465,000 after purchasing an additional 2,786,061 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,194,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,683 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at $76,350,158.55. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 147,528 shares of company stock worth $14,096,140 over the last 90 days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on WMT. 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. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

Walmart Price Performance

WMT stock opened at $85.13 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.22. The company has a market capitalization of $682.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.32, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $58.56 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

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. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The company had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

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

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.