Armis Advisers LLC Purchases New Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Armis Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 31,639 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $2,859,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in Walmart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Walmart during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in Walmart during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on WMT. Wall Street Zen raised Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Walmart from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $104.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total transaction of $2,493,888.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,972,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. This represents a 0.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total value 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. This represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 135,334 shares of company stock worth $12,615,864 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Stock Performance

NYSE:WMT traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $97.66. The stock had a trading volume of 5,294,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,801,048. The stock has a market capitalization of $781.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.52, a PEG ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.70. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $93.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $93.17. Walmart Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.16 and a 1-year high of $105.30. 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 (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The company's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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

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.