Compass Capital Management Inc. Sells 122,965 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Compass Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) by 14.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 719,178 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 122,965 shares during the period. Walmart accounts for about 4.3% of Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walmart were worth $64,978,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Walmart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in Walmart by 77.3% in the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Walmart from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Walmart from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine 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 a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.01.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In related news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $166,658.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 460,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,956,404.35. This represents a 0.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total transaction of $3,754,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 257,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,419,362.80. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 175,177 shares of company stock worth $16,403,728. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Walmart Stock Performance

Shares of WMT stock opened at $102.47 on Thursday. Walmart Inc. has a 52 week low of $55.85 and a 52 week high of $102.58. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $93.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $83.69. The firm has a market cap of $823.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.05, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $169.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 earnings per share. Walmart’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.48 earnings per share for the current year.

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.