Bay Rivers Group Buys New Holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Bay Rivers Group bought a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 12,138 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,066,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WMT. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new stake in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth about $252,000. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 69,542 shares of the retailer's stock worth $6,283,000 after purchasing an additional 992 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walmart by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 3,861 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 28.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,868,000 after purchasing an additional 21,939 shares during the period. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $10,645,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of WMT stock traded down $0.50 on Friday, hitting $97.46. 15,583,112 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,882,163. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.53 and a 200 day moving average of $93.76. The stock has a market cap of $779.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Walmart Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.64 and a 12 month high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.235 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Walmart's payout ratio is 40.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of Walmart stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total value of $217,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 630,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,421,282. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 888,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. This trade represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 137,534 shares of company stock valued at $12,833,664 in the last ninety days. 45.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WMT. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $108.00 target price (up previously from $97.00) on shares of Walmart in a report on Friday, February 21st. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Walmart from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Walmart in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $105.16.

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.