Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) EVP Sells $1,261,968.75 in Stock

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.15, for a total value of $1,261,968.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 460,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,293,612.80. This represents a 2.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Walmart Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WMT traded up $1.86 during trading on Friday, hitting $98.65. 25,437,170 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,829,563. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $95.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $87.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $792.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.94, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.55. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.20 and a 12-month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Walmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.07.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walmart

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WMT. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $5,737,355,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,306,627,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 479.6% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 18,479,259 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,492,200,000 after buying an additional 15,290,936 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 12.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,098,203,000 after buying an additional 7,200,004 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in 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 valued at $2,893,079,000 after acquiring an additional 3,927,173 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.