AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC Takes Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 10,027 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $906,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NEOS Investment Management LLC grew its position in Walmart by 31.6% in the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 232,999 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $21,051,000 after purchasing an additional 56,002 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 963,184 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $87,024,000 after acquiring an additional 56,763 shares during the period. Moment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Walmart during the fourth quarter valued at $849,000. Sava Infond d.o.o. bought a new position in Walmart in the fourth quarter valued at about $203,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Walmart by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,121,063 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $646,450,000 after purchasing an additional 579,868 shares during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on WMT shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. DZ Bank raised shares of Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $110.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Two equities research analysts have 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 data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 888,309 shares in the company, valued at $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.62, for a total value of $2,697,464.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,766,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $348,852,396.42. The trade was a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 147,528 shares of company stock worth $14,096,140 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

Walmart Price Performance

Walmart stock opened at $85.62 on Friday. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.56 and a 52-week high of $105.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $94.76 and its 200 day moving average is $89.20. The company has a market cap of $686.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.53, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53.

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 company had revenue of $180.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.83 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.00%.

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.