Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. Makes New $3.49 Million Investment in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 38,655 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $3,492,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WMT. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings 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 last quarter. Coyle Financial Counsel LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walmart by 3.1% in the fourth 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 position in Walmart by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,232 shares of the retailer's stock worth $924,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 0.7% during the fourth 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. lifted its position in Walmart by 1.6% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Walmart from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.58.

Walmart Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE WMT traded up $1.30 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $98.71. 10,426,976 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,186,049. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $59.14 and a 12 month high of $105.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $90.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.21. 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 company has a market cap of $789.77 billion, a PE ratio of 40.96, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. Walmart's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.95, for a total transaction of $2,823,571.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,558,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at $344,972,046.65. This represents a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 169,657 shares of company stock worth $15,984,929. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.