Marco Investment Management LLC Trims Stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Marco Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 262,024 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,358 shares during the quarter. Walmart comprises about 2.0% of Marco Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Marco Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Walmart were worth $23,674,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WMT. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $626,000. BBR Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. BBR Partners LLC now owns 78,931 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,131,000 after acquiring an additional 11,533 shares during the period. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 19,733 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 868 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 73,265 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,635,000 after acquiring an additional 5,183 shares during the period. Finally, Callan Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at $8,669,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total transaction of $166,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. This trade represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 185,777 shares of company stock worth $17,657,316 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $94.59 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $58.56 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $96.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.13. The firm has a market cap of $759.87 billion, a PE ratio of 39.25, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WMT. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Walmart from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.07.

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.