Becker Capital Management Inc. Has $67.28 Million Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Becker Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 742,917 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 21,594 shares during the quarter. Walmart makes up about 2.2% of Becker Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Becker Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $67,277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Walmart by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,937 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.1% during 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 holdings in shares of Walmart by 1.0% during 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 in the last quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walmart by 0.7% during 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. Finally, Van Strum & Towne Inc. increased its holdings 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 valued at $619,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.19, for a total value of $2,743,189.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,480,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $422,003,883.93. The trade was a 0.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel J. Bartlett sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.99, for a total value of $166,384.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 423,597 shares in the company, valued at $44,049,852.03. The trade was a 0.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 169,657 shares of company stock valued at $15,984,929 over the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on WMT shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Walmart from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.58.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT stock traded up $0.19 during trading on Thursday, hitting $97.44. The company had a trading volume of 13,150,271 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,842,666. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $779.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $90.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.21. Walmart Inc. has a one year low of $58.58 and a one year high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $178.83 billion. Equities analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. Walmart's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.