Catalina Capital Group LLC Reduces Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Catalina Capital Group LLC cut its position in shares of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT - Free Report) by 66.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,707 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 13,151 shares during the period. Catalina Capital Group LLC's holdings in Walmart were worth $589,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer's stock worth $38,194,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,683 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 90,635,238 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,167,186,000 after buying an additional 3,017,829 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Walmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,737,355,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,408,452,000 after buying an additional 1,133,201 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Walmart by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,641,936 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,943,049,000 after buying an additional 3,550,037 shares during the period. 26.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,148 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.58, for a total value of $2,815,113.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,451,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at $429,896,799.42. This represents a 0.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.66, for a total transaction of $195,052.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 398,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,288,807.84. This represents a 0.55% 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 valued at $12,656,659 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 45.58% of the company's stock.

Walmart Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of Walmart stock opened at $95.10 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Walmart Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.55 and a 12-month high of $105.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $758.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.64, a PEG ratio of 4.60 and a beta of 0.69. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $96.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $94.11.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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. Walmart had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 21.76%. The business had revenue of $165.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. Walmart's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Walmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMT has been the subject of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Walmart from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Walmart from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Two 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.50.

Walmart 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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