Alta Advisers Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Alta Advisers Ltd lifted its stake in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 23.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,513 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 2,713 shares during the quarter. Walmart makes up approximately 0.8% of Alta Advisers Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Alta Advisers Ltd's holdings in Walmart were worth $1,311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer's stock worth $538,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC now owns 3,431 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $924,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 15,685 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,417,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van Strum & Towne Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. now owns 6,849 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $619,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Price Performance

Walmart stock traded down $0.82 during trading on Friday, reaching $95.02. The company had a trading volume of 15,311,845 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,802,963. The firm has a market capitalization of $761.76 billion, a PE ratio of 39.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $90.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $90.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.58 and a 1-year high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $178.83 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Walmart's payout ratio is currently 39.00%.

Insider Transactions at Walmart

In other Walmart news, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,049,852.03. This trade represents a 0.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.80, for a total value of $3,754,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 257,281 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 have sold 140,533 shares of company stock valued at $13,241,740. Corporate insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on WMT shares. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Walmart from $107.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.58.

Walmart Company Profile

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.