King Luther Capital Management Corp Raises Stock Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 3.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,281,646 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 42,643 shares during the quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in Walmart were worth $112,516,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WMT. Whelan Financial grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 4,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 25,915 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,275,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Scott & Selber Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Scott & Selber Inc. now owns 2,920 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,794 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $684,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Lauterbach Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Lauterbach Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,885 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,744 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.60, for a total value of $166,726.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 649,233 shares in the company, valued at $62,066,674.80. This trade represents a 0.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 19,416 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.58, for a total value of $1,855,781.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 4,412,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $421,737,000.84. The trade was a 0.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 146,112 shares of company stock valued at $14,080,073. Insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

WMT stock opened at $103.77 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $97.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $95.38. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.14 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The firm has a market cap of $828.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.35, a PEG ratio of 4.99 and a beta of 0.66.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $103.00 price target (up from $102.00) on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Walmart from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Walmart has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.67.

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.