Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. Trims Stock Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. lessened its holdings in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 20.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,904 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 3,658 shares during the period. Walmart makes up approximately 0.8% of Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.'s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.'s holdings in Walmart were worth $1,221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Eagle Capital Management LLC increased its position in Walmart by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 3,861 shares of the retailer's stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Walmart by 28.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 98,150 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,868,000 after acquiring an additional 21,939 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Walmart by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,849 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $800,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the period. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in Walmart by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 36,945 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,338,000 after purchasing an additional 1,720 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 90,423 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,170,000 after purchasing an additional 5,765 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walmart news, EVP John R. Furner sold 13,125 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.85, for a total transaction of $1,258,031.25. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 945,434 shares of the company's stock, valued at $90,619,848.90. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total transaction of $217,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 630,518 shares in the company, valued at $62,421,282. The trade was a 0.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 142,711 shares of company stock valued at $13,710,319 over the last three months. 45.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Walmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on Walmart from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.67.

Walmart Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WMT traded up $1.43 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $95.83. 13,768,629 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 19,832,529. The company has a market capitalization of $764.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 0.68. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $97.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $94.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Walmart Inc. has a 52-week low of $66.67 and a 52-week high of $105.30.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.03. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The firm had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

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