Bell Bank Purchases 8,890 Shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Bell Bank raised its position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 80.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 19,877 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 8,890 shares during the quarter. Bell Bank's holdings in Walmart were worth $1,745,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Walmart in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Walmart by 1,007.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 288 shares of the retailer's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Walmart in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new position in shares of Walmart in the first quarter valued at $49,000. 26.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Walmart from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $117.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Walmart in a report on Monday, February 24th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Walmart in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walmart

In related news, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total transaction of $217,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 630,518 shares in the company, valued at $62,421,282. This represents a 0.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.63, for a total value of $2,493,888.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,972,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $340,166,630.71. The trade was a 0.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 135,294 shares of company stock worth $12,656,659 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE WMT opened at $94.24 on Wednesday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $96.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $94.11. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $66.55 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market capitalization of $752.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.27, a PEG ratio of 4.60 and a beta of 0.69.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 21.76% and a net margin of 2.75%. The company's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Walmart's payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Walmart Company Profile

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.

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