Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) Shares Sold by Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 53,948 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 4,625 shares during the quarter. Walmart makes up about 1.5% of Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $4,874,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in Walmart by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $924,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. now owns 6,849 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $619,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 5,584 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE WMT opened at $85.08 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $682.04 billion, a PE ratio of 35.30, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.56 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $89.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping 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. On average, research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value of $343,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 888,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $76,350,158.55. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.96, for a total transaction of $1,220,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 568,626 shares in the company, valued at $52,859,472.96. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 147,528 shares of company stock worth $14,096,140 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on WMT. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.17.

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.